The final roof section has been installed on the HS2 Burton Green tunnel, marking the completion of the structure’s main civil engineering works. The tunnel was designed by the Mott MacDonald/SYSTRA joint venture and constructed by Balfour Beatty VINCI.
The 16m-wide twin-box tunnel will carry high-speed trains beneath the village of Burton Green near Kenilworth. With the structural phase now complete, engineers and ecologists will begin work on the tunnel’s 500m-long green roof, designed to integrate the railway into the surrounding landscape while creating new green space for local communities.
Doug Barnett, senior project manager for HS2 Ltd, said, “With the main civil engineering complete, thanks to the hard work and dedication of the 150-strong team on the ground, we can now begin the next phase of this exciting project.
“We look forward to working with local communities to bring the bold design vision for Burton Green tunnel to life, maximising the potential of this new green space.”
Tim Akers, design manager at the Mott MacDonald/SYSTRA Design Joint Venture, said, “A range of techniques were incorporated into the design to enable construction through this narrow corridor within the village. The end result will be a railway within a landscape, where the original character of the Kenilworth Greenway and ecological connectivity to the wider landscape are restored over the buried tunnel.”
Material excavated during construction is being reused as part of wider landscaping works, supporting HS2’s sustainability objectives. Extensive planting of native trees and shrubs will create new biodiverse habitats for wildlife while restoring vegetated links between Black Waste Wood, Little Poors Wood and the surrounding landscape.
HS2’s construction partner, Balfour Beatty VINCI, is also working with local community groups and schools to identify opportunities to enhance the greenway, while celebrating the area’s landscape, ecology and heritage.
