HS2 announce winner of £370m Interchange Station contract

Credit: HS2

HS2 Ltd has announced that Laing O’Rourke Delivery Limited will build HS2’s new Interchange Station in Solihull, at the heart of Britain’s new high speed rail network, set to bring economic growth to the West Midlands economy. The contract, which is worth up to £370 million, will see them work with HS2 Ltd in two stages to finalise the detailed design and then build the landmark station over the next few years. Contracts will be signed after the completion of the standstill period.

“Congratulations to Laing O’Rourke who will be awarded this significant HS2 contract,” Andrew Cubitt, Procurement and Supply Chain Director for HS2, said. “This will not only unlock many jobs and business opportunities in the Midlands, but also provide hundreds of supply chain contracts for companies right across the country.”

The construction site for the station covers an area of 150 hectares within a triangle of land formed by the M42, A45 and A452. Significant progress has already been made on the site, including construction of modular bridges over the M42 and A446 as part of a remodelled road network in the area to facilitate access to the new station. HS2’s Main Works Contractor Balfour Beatty VINCI are currently preparing the site where the new station will be built.

There will be up to five trains per hour passing through the station 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.

“It’s fantastic to have Laing O’Rourke ready to build our new HS2 station in Solihull at the heart of the HS2 network,” Lee Holmes, Stations Director for HS2, said. “So far, we’ve worked with Arup to develop an award-winning, eco-friendly station, and now look forward to starting the next phase of design before construction starts next year. The station has been designed to be net zero in operation, which is a key part of HS2’s strategy to reduce carbon and our ambition to build the most sustainable railway in the world.”

The station is the first railway station globally to achieve the BREEAM ‘Outstanding’ certification at the design stage, a measure of sustainability for new and refurbished buildings, putting it in the top 1 per cent of buildings in the UK for eco-friendly credentials.

This recognises the station’s eco-friendly features including maximising natural daylight and ventilation, a station roof design which can capture and reuse rainwater, and features to enable net zero carbon emissions from day-to-day energy consumption. Energy efficient technology will also be incorporated, such as air source heat pumps and LED lighting.

The huge growth plans around the site, being led by the Urban Growth Company, will support 30,000 jobs, up to 3,000 new homes and 70,000m2 of commercial space. These will form part of the UK Central Hub area plans for 70,000 jobs, 5,000 new homes and 650,000m2 of commercial space, generating £6.2bn GVA per year and bringing 1.3 million people to within a 45-minute public transport commute of the station.