Just a follow up about what I said about the breakthrough on the 24th February - I saw in the news today that the actual breakthrough happened this morning (27th Feb) and that what I saw from the air was just a painting covering it up. So that means there was no scoop from me after all :)
Cheers. It's my favourite section as I cycle from Great Missenden and up in the hills along the country lanes. It's beautiful up there. I may do a short video showing some of the nice parts.
Great video - the tunnel breakthrough is a real surprise! There is a real sense of progress now. I like the way some of the cuttings have been grassed and blend in well with the landscape. I think it gives an idea what it will look like in a few years time.
Cheers. Yes, as I said, it surprised me too. I was a bit worried I might be doing something wrong by sharing the breakthrough but I needn't have worried because I did a Google search earlier and I've seen a photo of it which was taken last week and it was used on a newspaper's web story. I agree about the cutting looking more blended in now and I'm eager to see the rest of the landscape looking like that but I think it will be a long time yet. They still have to put the trackbed in between there and Wendover Dean.
@@KarlVaughan Your level of professionalism and integrity is such a refreshing change from the idiots that fly drones, but seem to deliberately provoke the security guards. I think they do it to generate more views and likes. I have unsubscribed from 3 or 4 because it is just drama - not useful information.
1:33 That concrete structure is probably a concrete batching plant. The bins will be for aggregate storage and the foundation near them will be where the batching tower will be placed.
I thought so at the time but they actually broke through today. It was a painting that I saw and from the air it looked real. I suppose it would make sense because the cutting heads wouldn't be blue like that after all the miles of wear.
Looks like you are the first to report on the tunnel being completed! Well done. There was something about a sink hole forming due to tunnelling. Perhaps hs2 was waiting for that story to reach its conclusion first?
We are kept in the dark as far as what's going on most of the time so it's hard to say really. To me it looks like the ceremony has already happened because the machine is visible. Normally you would see it breaking through in front of a crowd of people. Maybe they just haven't released the video yet. They do that a lot where they take weeks to tell us what's happening.
It looks to me like they were all set up for a breakthrough ceremony but that the news has been suppressed for political reasons. I feel sorry for the tunnelling teams who have worked so hard for so long and have now been denied their moment of glory.
I think if they wanted to save it for a big reveal they would have kept it blocked up until the TBM was just about to break through. Either that or keep it hidden behind tarpaulin. Also, HS2's channel gets many thousands more views than mine so I doubt my little channel has denied anyone their glory.
I support HS2 but the sheer amount of space taken up outside the trace with construction and temporary works seems so unnecessary. Also the vast complexes of temporary offices with their car parks, do all these pen pushers really need to be located on site? I don't recall seeing all this with other similar projects such as motorways and HS1.
The contract is the NEC Target actual cost option C which requires immediate notification if anything becomes apparent that might change the cost or programme. That takes up 1 commercial team. Then another commercial team is required to monitor sub contractors progress to value their works. Then there's a team of engineers monitoring tolerances and installation Then sub contract package managers. Then site secretaries and a project director. They all need offices. Meeting rooms are also needed as are site welfare accommodation and design team offices along with designers.
Would be much quicker if put underground especially in built up areas and when crossing roads, rivers or other railways. Costs of tunnelling are known with precision. Render the compulsory purchases obsolete and put the lawyers out of business.
Still need lawyers to draft up the contract, warranties and bond. Unfortunately there's no escaping them. Also varying ground conditions vary the cost of tunelling.
it's the main reason this thing is so damn expensive. they've gone and built *NEW* roads, bridges and god-knows what else *IN THE WAY* so they have to spend money tearing down what they've spent money putting up. it's completely and utterly insane.
Inevitable in conjested Britain. If they were building a railway across a hundred miles of an open plain with nothing in the way the 32 billion price tag would be about right.
Just a follow up about what I said about the breakthrough on the 24th February - I saw in the news today that the actual breakthrough happened this morning (27th Feb) and that what I saw from the air was just a painting covering it up. So that means there was no scoop from me after all :)
Another excellent video Karl, thanks for taking the time to do this. Appreciated.
Cheers. It's my favourite section as I cycle from Great Missenden and up in the hills along the country lanes. It's beautiful up there. I may do a short video showing some of the nice parts.
Brilliant video as usual Karl, many thanks. Florence’s breakthrough was featured on BBC South news this evening 27/02/2024.
Great video - the tunnel breakthrough is a real surprise! There is a real sense of progress now. I like the way some of the cuttings have been grassed and blend in well with the landscape. I think it gives an idea what it will look like in a few years time.
Cheers. Yes, as I said, it surprised me too. I was a bit worried I might be doing something wrong by sharing the breakthrough but I needn't have worried because I did a Google search earlier and I've seen a photo of it which was taken last week and it was used on a newspaper's web story. I agree about the cutting looking more blended in now and I'm eager to see the rest of the landscape looking like that but I think it will be a long time yet. They still have to put the trackbed in between there and Wendover Dean.
@@KarlVaughan Your level of professionalism and integrity is such a refreshing change from the idiots that fly drones, but seem to deliberately provoke the security guards. I think they do it to generate more views and likes. I have unsubscribed from 3 or 4 because it is just drama - not useful information.
Amazing engineering feat should have been built years ago.
1:33 That concrete structure is probably a concrete batching plant. The bins will be for aggregate storage and the foundation near them will be where the batching tower will be placed.
Great scoop on the breakthrough!
I thought so at the time but they actually broke through today. It was a painting that I saw and from the air it looked real. I suppose it would make sense because the cutting heads wouldn't be blue like that after all the miles of wear.
Looks like you are the first to report on the tunnel being completed! Well done. There was something about a sink hole forming due to tunnelling. Perhaps hs2 was waiting for that story to reach its conclusion first?
We are kept in the dark as far as what's going on most of the time so it's hard to say really. To me it looks like the ceremony has already happened because the machine is visible. Normally you would see it breaking through in front of a crowd of people. Maybe they just haven't released the video yet. They do that a lot where they take weeks to tell us what's happening.
This spans the whole area of my youth, I can hardly recognise any of it ?!!🤔🧐
I know what you mean. Being an Aylesbury bloke I've seen most of my childhood places disappear - even my secondary school!
The concrete structure looks like a temporary area to contain materials?
It looks to me like they were all set up for a breakthrough ceremony but that the news has been suppressed for political reasons. I feel sorry for the tunnelling teams who have worked so hard for so long and have now been denied their moment of glory.
I think if they wanted to save it for a big reveal they would have kept it blocked up until the TBM was just about to break through. Either that or keep it hidden behind tarpaulin. Also, HS2's channel gets many thousands more views than mine so I doubt my little channel has denied anyone their glory.
That is a painted mural on the wall of the TBM cutter. TBM breakthrough very very very soon
I see they broke through this morning so I had just caught it before it all happened. Thankfully, I didn't steal anyone's thunder after all!
@@KarlVaughan should have broken through weeks ago.
Empty car park, all marked out at 1:51 - what's the story behind that, will it be kept?
It was used by HS2 but only temporarily. The trackbed will go through it at some point.
Looks like you saw a painting of the TBM on the wall, the official video shows parts of it th-cam.com/video/2Zzmj9gmGxU/w-d-xo.html
I did indeed! I've seen on the news today that they broke through this morning. What a good painting it was though, it convinced me.
I support HS2 but the sheer amount of space taken up outside the trace with construction and temporary works seems so unnecessary. Also the vast complexes of temporary offices with their car parks, do all these pen pushers really need to be located on site? I don't recall seeing all this with other similar projects such as motorways and HS1.
The contract is the NEC Target actual cost option C which requires immediate notification if anything becomes apparent that might change the cost or programme. That takes up 1 commercial team. Then another commercial team is required to monitor sub contractors progress to value their works. Then there's a team of engineers monitoring tolerances and installation Then sub contract package managers. Then site secretaries and a project director. They all need offices. Meeting rooms are also needed as are site welfare accommodation and design team offices along with designers.
Would be much quicker if put underground especially in built up areas and when crossing roads, rivers or other railways. Costs of tunnelling are known with precision. Render the compulsory purchases obsolete and put the lawyers out of business.
Still need lawyers to draft up the contract, warranties and bond. Unfortunately there's no escaping them. Also varying ground conditions vary the cost of tunelling.
it's the main reason this thing is so damn expensive. they've gone and built *NEW* roads, bridges and god-knows what else *IN THE WAY* so they have to spend money tearing down what they've spent money putting up. it's completely and utterly insane.
Inevitable in conjested Britain. If they were building a railway across a hundred miles of an open plain with nothing in the way the 32 billion price tag would be about right.
Utterly grotesque. Stomach churning.