Construction work ready to begin at HS2’s ‘Interchange’ station site near Birmingham Airport

Preparatory work has almost been completed and now major structures are being put in place on the site of HS2’s new Interchange station – the brand new public transport gateway serving the Midlands, close to Birmingham International station, the NEC and Birmingham Airport.The site, covering an area of 150 hectares, is located within a triangle of land formed by the M42, A45 and A452. Current work includes construction of modular bridges over the M42 and A446, and remodelling of the road network in the area to facilitate access to the new station, as well as easing access to and from Birmingham Business Park.Around 200 people, including graduates and apprentices, are working on the site, from HS2’s Early Works contractor LM, a joint venture between Laing O’Rourke and Murphy. This is set to increase to 250 people over the coming months as the construction of new bridges and access roads ramps up.Major regeneration plans around the site, being led by the Urban Growth Company, will support 70,000 new and existing jobs, 5,000 new homes and 650,000 square metres of commercial space, generating an additional £6.2 billion GVA per year and bringing 1.3 million people to within a 45-minute commute of the station.An Automated People Mover will link to the NEC, Birmingham International Station and Birmingham Airport, carrying up to 2,100 passengers per hour in each direction, with a link every 3 minutes along a 2.3 kilometre route.An Automated People Mover will link to the NEC, Birmingham International Station and Birmingham Airport.The focus at Interchange is on sustainability, during both construction and operation. The site is using solar panels to generate power for the site offices, and at least 90% of construction waste, demolition waste and excavated material is being reused.The new station will be net zero carbon in operation, adopting the latest environmentally friendly design and sustainable technologies including rainwater harvesting and sustainable power generation with more than 2,000 square metres of solar panels. It has been designed to focus on open space and landscaping, with new tree planting and a landscaped pond to encourage biodiversity.By freeing up space on existing lines, for new local train services, passengers and freight, HS2 will help ease congestion and over-crowding, and offer an environmentally friendly form of transport for long distance passengers. There will be up to 5 trains per hour passing through this brand new interchange in both directions, with an estimated total of 175,000 seats per day, making this one of the best connected transport interchanges in the country and a new gateway to the UK.