Construction of HS2 has made significant progress, with more than one million tonnes of building materials delivered to the Quainton station near Aylesbury by 646 freight trains over the last 16 months. This operation has successfully removed the equivalent of more than 101,000 lorry journeys from local roads in Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire, and West Northamptonshire, helping to reduce congestion and environmental impact.
Strategically located on an existing freight line north of Aylesbury, Quainton is playing a key role in the construction of Britain's new high-speed rail line. With an additional 1,400 freight trains expected to arrive over the next two years, total deliveries are expected to reach around 3 million tonnes of construction materials. This is in addition to one million tonnes already delivered by rail to other local railheads, cumulatively removing the equivalent of 217,000 lorries from local roads and saving approximately 22,378 tonnes of carbon emissions.
The operation of the Quainton railhead is due to the collaborative efforts of HS2's main construction contractor, EKFB (comprising Eiffage, Kier, Ferrovial Construction, and Bam Nuttall), and Network Rail. This partnership has been instrumental in adapting the existing infrastructure to support the increased frequency of freight services.
Paul Bedford, EKFB’s Head of Logistics and Security, emphasized the strategic importance of utilizing rail for material transportation to achieve efficiency, environmental, and financial benefits. “Moving material by rail was always an essential part of our strategy to help deliver this project efficiently (…) The railheads are now taking large volumes of HGVs off the local road network, reducing our carbon footprint through fewer road journeys, and helping to generate significant financial savings by using a more cost-effective distribution system.”
