Austrian system for HS2: an example of the PORR slab track system which will be used on the UK’s high-speed line.
HS2 Ltd has awarded a £260 million contract to supply a modular slab track system to a partnership which includes PORR UK Ltd and Aggregate Industries UK.
The award is one of the first major contracts awarded for Phases One and 2a, covering all the track between London and Crewe except for tunnels and specialist structures. The slab track segments will be manufactured by the PORR consortium at a new factory near Shepton Mallet in Somerset, built at an existing Aggregate Industries site, using a modular construction system known as Slab Track Austria. HS2 Ltd says the system, which is used on several high-speed railways across the world, will reduce maintenance costs and improve performance in comparison to traditional ballasted track.
A separate track systems contractor, due to be appointed in 2022, will have overall responsibility for managing and co-ordinating the design and installation of the complex rail systems in each section of the route, including the installation of the slab track manufactured by the PORR consortium.
