HS2 preliminary design contracts awarded

UK Client High Speed Two (HS2) announced on Thursday that it had awarded four contracts for civil and structural design services. The companies will prepare preliminary designs that will inform the hybrid bill documents to be submitted to the UK Parliament by the end of 2013.

Mott MacDonald was awarded the GBP 13.2M (USD 20.97M) ‘London Metropolitan Area’ contract. It covered some 25km of new HSR line from Euston running through northwest London, with work on the link to HS1 and a 14-platform interchange at Old Oak Common. London Mayor Boris Johnson has pledged to argue for increased tunnelling in the London area to avoid surface disruption.

Atkins won the GBP 13.3M (USD 21.13M) ‘Country South’ contract for 91km of line through Buckinghamshire, Northamptonshire and Oxfordshire. The contract covers tunnelling through the Chilterns.

Capita Symonds Ineco’s GBP 11.1M (USD 17.6M) ‘Country North’ contract covers 78km through Warwickshire and Staffordshire, with a connection to the West Coast Main Line.

Arup has a GBP 11.4M (USD 18.1M) ‘West Midland Metropolitan Area’ design contract covering some 22km of the route. It includes the Curzon Street station complex, Birmingham interchange station, Washwood Heath rolling stock maintenance depot and a people mover from the interchange station to the airport.

The contracts were part of ‘Lot One: Professional Services Framework’.