Skanska, in joint venture with Costain, has worked to deliver the Paddington Elizabeth line Station.
The Elizabeth line project is the most recent transformation of Paddington. It builds on the legacy of the permanent station building completed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel in 1853, the arrival of London Underground in 1863 and the opening of the original section between Paddington and Farringdon by the Metropolitan Railway.
Built below ground adjacent to the 19th Century Grade I listed building, the new Elizabeth line station has a 120-metre-long entrance canopy on Eastbourne Terrace. It extends four levels below Eastbourne Terrace and Departures Road with entrances via a newly pedestrianised public area that connects to the existing national rail station.
The Costain Skanska joint venture (CSjv) team was responsible for delivering all key elements of the station including the main building and structural works, highways and traffic management works, installing system wide communications equipment and materials as well as landscaping, site restoration and urban realm improvements.
Skanska’s mechanical and electrical installations team worked on the project to deliver mechanical, electrical, fire and public health works and Cementation Skanska completed piling and foundations works early in the contract.
The tunnel boring machines that were used to construct the new train tunnels had to pass through the walls of the station as part of their journey between Royal Oak and Farringdon. This involved working in restricted and challenging spaces. Each boring machine measured 150 metres long – roughly equivalent to 14 London buses placed end to end – and weighed around 1,000 tonnes.
The Paddington Elizabeth Line station is one of ten new stations to be transferred to Transport for London as part of the Crossrail programme. The Paddington Elizabeth line station will be a key part of London’s transport infrastructure for generations to come, helping people to travel sustainably into and around London.
