HS2 Uses Rail Freight To Take Extra 300,000 Truck Journeys Off Bucks Roads

The first freight train arrived at HS2’s newest Bucks construction hub this week as the high speed rail project confirmed that the new facility is expected to take the equivalent of 300,000 lorry movements off local roads. Situated on an existing freight line north of Aylesbury, the new railhead will welcome approx. 1,800 freight trains over the next three years as construction of HS2 gathers pace.

Delivering this material by rail instead of HGV is expected to save 27,903 t CO2, the equivalent of 126 million miles driven by an average petrol car - or 156,408 return journeys between London and Edinburgh. The news comes two years after HS2 began delivering construction material to its other Buckinghamshire sites by rail. In that time 655 trains have delivered 1.1 million tonnes of aggregate, removing more than 116,000 truck journeys from the road and saving an estimated 13,000 tonnes CO₂.

The new site near Quainton, will allow HS2 to continue shipping material by rail as construction ramps up and is expected to handle 3 million tonnes of material – mainly aggregates used for construction. Once on site, most of the material will be stockpiled before being moved up or down the trace of the new high speed line on a series of dedicated haul roads to keep it away from local road users.

Welcoming the news, HS2 Ltd Senior Project Manager Paul Marshall said: “We are serious about reducing the impact of construction on the local community and promoting sustainable construction methods. That’s why we started delivering materials by rail two years ago and this new railhead will help us continue to take huge numbers of trucks off local roads. We’ve been working closely with Network Rail, EKFB and the Freight Operators for a number of years to make this possible, and to deliver not only low carbon journeys for our passengers, but also cut carbon in construction.”

The railhead was set up by HS2’s main works contractor EKFB - a team made up of Eiffage, Kier, Ferrovial Construction and Bam Nuttall. EKFB is delivering the 80 km central section of the route, including 17 viaducts, 81 bridges and three cut and cover ‘green tunnels’. They worked with a team from Network Rail who have completed a series of alterations which will enable freight services to operate in and out of the new railhead at Quainton. The railhead will be operated by Fishbone Solutions on behalf of EKFB with trains operated by DB Cargo UK Ltd on behalf of Hanson.