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Old Oak Common - mega station starts to grow

HS2 Ltd A computer image shows two long white trains inside a large station. Passengers are waiting to board.HS2 Ltd
Old Oak Common will be a mega hub station in north-west London.

Trains won't run into Paddington from Christmas Day until 30 December because of preparation work at the new mega station being built at Old Oak Common in north-west London.

As well as the new high speed line HS2, eventually the whole of the Great Western mainline will be moved into the new station.

I was given a guided tour of the progress being made there.

HS2 Ltd An image shows a large, glass station with a curved roof with passengers in the concourse areaHS2 Ltd
A computer image of Old Oak Common

The site is huge with 1,500 workers a day there.

A "box" has been dug out of the earth where HS2 services will stop on long platforms. There is the start of a tunnel which will take the trains onward to the line's eventual terminus at Euston.

Eventually it will cater for services from HS2, Great Western, the Elizabeth line and Heathrow Express. Those behind the project say it will become one of the best connected stations in Europe.

HS2 Ltd A computer image shows a large, airy station with curved beams and glass, with passengers moving around.HS2 Ltd
An image inside the planned Old Oak Common

When it's finished a quarter of a million passengers a day will use the station. It will also serve as a terminus for HS2 while work at Euston is finished.

A vast development will be built around the station including thousands of homes.

Patrick Cawley is from HS2 Ltd and says the station will be a big interchange: "You will get off your HS2 train here, you'll step out into a light, airy, open, modern concourse.

"This will be a landmark station. You'll transit up via lift or escalator or a staircase to a concourse area and then you can catch a train to the South West or into London via the Elizabeth line or to Heathrow airport. This will be one of the most connected stations in Europe."

A construction site with a large, open area with concrete pillars and beams.
The station box where HS2 trains will stop at platforms
A shot of the skyline over Old Oak Common showing the construction site with cranes hanging over the area
Old Oak Common should be finished between 2029 and 2033

Nicole Coady from Network Rail says they will also be working on other areas as well as Old Oak Common: "Over the Christmas period, Network Rail will take the opportunity to not just do some of the preparation work at Old Oak Common.

"We are also doing wider resilience work, things like the overhead lines and drainages so that we can offer a more robust service for passengers in the New Year with more resilience around the infrastructure."

Three workers stand on a grid of steel. They are inspecting the work.
Steel work on the site which will eventually become platforms for HS2
A construction site with a dump truck. In the distance there is a large black hole where the boring machines will eventually go to Euston.
The tunnel entrance will eventually lead to Euston

Many residents especially those who live on Wells House Road, have suffered years of disruption.

Many there are fed up with the noise and the dust and living next to a construction site. HS2 says it works hard to mitigate those issues.

The station is predicted to open between 2029 and 2033.

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