First breakthrough at HS2 tunnel in Birmingham as 22-month journey comes to an end

The first breakthrough at an HS2 tunnel under Birmingham has taken place.

Tunnel boring machine, Mary Ann, completed its 3.5-mile journey creating the new Bromford Tunnel between the Warwickshire Village of Water Orton and the Birmingham suburb of Washwood Heath on May 9.

The breakthrough ended 652 days of tunnelling.

HS2 Ltd’s Chief Executive, Mark Wild, described it was a “significant milestone” for the project.

“Washwood Heath is set to become one of the most important sites on the entire HS2 network – the point at which the railway will be operated, controlled and maintained using the very latest digital technology.”

The breakthrough was also witnessed by Rail Minister, Lord Hendy.

He told RAIL that congestion of the West Coast Main Line, which included a 35-minute delay to his own service into Birmingham due to a late-running freight train ahead, showed “justification for this sort of project”.

“It's a two-track railway from the junction with the main West Coast main line to Birmingham New Street. So it's not like we've got a railway full of white space anymore,” he said.

Approximately one million tonnes of spoil was excavated during the tunnel drive. This will be reused at the construction of nearby Dela Junction where 13 viaducts will allow HS2 trains to travel between London, Interchange in Solihull and Birmingham Curzon Street.

Weighing 1,600 tonnes and measuring 125 metres long, Mary Ann travelled at around 30 metres per day with a team of 450 people working on the project. A total of 2,971 concrete rings, made up of 20,797 individual segments, now line the tunnel.

HS2’s Depot and Network Integrated Control Centre will be built next to the tunnel portal at Washwood Heath. Trains will be serviced and stored, and real time operation of the line will be controlled, at the site.

Mary Ann, named after the Warwickshire-born writer better known by her pen name, George Eliot, spent 22 months tunnelling under landmarks such as Park Hall Nature Reserve, the M6 and River Tame – the latter being crossed four times.