Watch: HS2 engineers complete Delta Junction viaduct in two minutes in the West Midlands

The footage shows work from February and through July 2024 as the two HS2 railway viaducts are placed over the M42/M6 link roads at Delta Junction in North Warwickshire.

The ‘push’ to move the 158-metre-long ‘West Link Viaduct’ into its final position over both westbound and eastbound motorway link roads took a total of 11 hours over the weekend - but the film has condensed the work undertaken into minutes.

The final operation was completed quicker than planned allowing the motorway link roads to reopen 6.5 hours ahead of schedule.

HS2 Ltd, its main works contractor Balfour Beatty VINCI (BBV) and National Highways collaborated on the engineering feats.

The viaducts are part of a group of 13 viaducts which make up HS2’s triangular Delta Junction. This section of the railway enables high speed trains to travel between London, Interchange Station in Solihull and Birmingham Curzon Street Station.

HS2’s high-speed trains are being planned to ‘significantly reduce’ journey times and free up space on the existing mainline for more local and freight services. The railway is expected to be operational between 2029 and 2033.

‘An impressive achievement’

Panos Psathas, Senior Project Manager at HS2 Ltd said: “Completing the last in a quartet of viaduct pushes this year is an impressive achievement for the team, particularly as these are the first huge viaduct spans to be built in the Delta Junction.

“We’re now at peak construction, with thousands of specialist engineers, architects, designers and project managers working together, using cutting edge technology like this to deliver Britain’s new high-speed railway.”

JoseLuis Preciados, Senior Project Manager at Balfour Beatty VINCI said: "This final viaduct push is a significant milestone in our construction of HS2’s Delta Junction. I’m incredibly proud of the BBV team, who’ve worked tirelessly throughout this year to ensure each of these complex operations were planned and delivered with precision.

“Each viaduct deck was built offline and moved into position over a weekend closure of the highway, drastically reducing the impacts on road users. We’ve worked in collaboration with our partners National Highways throughout the entire process, to make sure that this activity was delivered safely and efficiently.”

Tibo Suvée, Project Manager at Victor Buyck Steel Construction said: “This has been a complex eight-month operation, and the first time our push-pull jacking system has been used in the UK. The technique provides greater flexibility during the launching operation by allowing the bridge to be moved backwards or both ways if needed.”

National Highways Network Planner, David Patmore, said: “Complex operations such as this will inevitably cause some disruption but we have worked extremely hard, with HS2 and their partners, to minimise that disruption for people using our roads.

“We’d like to thank motorists for their patience while these significant works have been successfully and safely completed.”