Video: HS2 celebrates first breakthrough of tunnel linking Warwickshire and Birmingham

The 125-metre-long machine began constructing the 3.5-mile (5.8km) Bromford Tunnel, which starts at the Warwickshire village of Water Orton and extends to the northeast Birmingham suburb of Washwood Heath, in July 2023.

The tunnel boring machine (TBM) was named Mary Ann by the local community in a nod to the Warwickshire-born writer better known by her pen name George Eliot.

HS2 has said, the tunnel breakthrough – HS2’s first in Birmingham - “is a significant milestone for the project, which will almost halve journey times between Britain’s two largest cities, whilst freeing up valuable track space on the heavily congested West Coast Main Line for more local, regional and freight services”.

A company spokesman added: "The ground-breaking achievement comes as construction work on the giant structures being built to carry HS2 hits a peak, with around 31,000 people now employed on the programme across the 140-mile route.

"Despite recent progress, HS2 is currently undergoing a fundamental reset to make sure the railway can be delivered efficiently and for the lowest feasible cost.”

A 450-strong team supported the civil engineering feat.

Men and women working on behalf of HS2’s construction partner, Balfour Beatty VINCI (BBV), worked around the clock, for just under two years, to complete the first section of the tunnel.

The second bore is expected to be completed later this year by TBM Elizabeth.

Following the excavation, teams will begin fitting out the tunnel with cross passages, concrete finishing works and base slabs, and emergency and maintenance walkways.

During the 22-month-long mission, the team on board the 1,600-tonne machine worked at depths of up to 40 metres. They navigated Mary Ann under the Park Hall Nature Reserve, the M6 motorway, and the meandering River Tame – which they crossed four times, with a headspace as low as five metres.

The Washwood Heath site, where Mary Ann broke through, will soon become the nerve centre for HS2’s operations.

Next to the tunnel portal, HS2’s depot and network integrated control centre – from which trains will be serviced and stored, and the real time operation of the railway will be controlled - will be built.

Mark Wild, HS2 Ltd’s chief executive said: “Today’s breakthrough is a significant milestone for the project and I’m immensely proud of the men and women who have worked day and night to bring Mary Ann and her crew home safely.

“Washwood Heath is set to become one of the most important sites on the entire HS2 network – the point at which the railway will be operated, controlled and maintained using the very latest digital technology.

“HS2’s construction is transforming the West Midlands, and the £10 billion investment boost it is already driving across the region will multiply in the years ahead.”

Lord Hendy, Rail Minister, who attended the breakthrough event, added: “Today marks a major milestone for the country’s biggest infrastructure project, opening up the HS2 gateway to Birmingham.

“This is the longest railway tunnel ever built in the West Midlands. It’s truly a monumental feat of engineering and represents huge progress.

“Creating jobs, providing opportunities, and supporting economic growth are at the heart of this project - 10,000 people and 400 businesses across the West Midlands alone are delivering this project as we speak, bringing £10bn to the region’s economy over the next decade.”

To find out more about the HS2 project visit https://www.hs2.org.uk/