High Speed Rail (HS2)

Moorhall Road - night time road closures at HS2 Viaduct

HS2/Align have requested 6 nights of night time road closures on Moorhall Road by the HS2 Viaduct, from Monday 27 January to Sunday 2 February, to install the noise barriers on the viaduct section that oversails Moorhall Road.

These works would shut Moorhall Road each night between 10pm and 5am for safety reasons with overhead working installing the boise barriers using a crane. There will be no access for emergency service vehicles during these road closures.

The road closures will take place on the following dates:

• Monday 27 January at 10pm to Tuesday 28 January at 5am
• Tuesday 28 January at 10pm to Wednesday 29 January at 5am
• Wednesday 29 January at 10pm to Thursday 30 January at 5am
• Thursday 30 January at 10pm to Friday 31 January at 5am
• Friday 31 January at 10pm to Saturday 1 February at 5am
• Saturday 1 February at 10pm to Sunday 2 February at 5am

Map below shows the area along Moorhall Road where the road will be closed:

The diversion route will be via Harvil Road and the A40 as shown on the map below:

Harvil Road - night time road closures at New Chiltern Line bridge

HS2/SCS previously undertook night time road closures of Harvil Road on 4 consecutive saturday nights from Saturday 23 November 2024 until Saturday 14 December 2024 to survey the butt welds underneath the new Chiltern Line bridge over Harvil Road.

Following these initial surveys of the bridge, the manufacturer has identified a further 170 surveys are required to be carried out on the bridge, and due to the need for possession of the railway underneath the bridge in order to carry out the works, these works can only be done at night, between the hours of Midnight and 5am (apart from friday nights during which no railway possessions are allowed).

Due to quality assurance issues at the point of fabrication, the manufacturer is required to check the Welds which were completed at fabrication. Please note these are butt welds to the haunch brackets, and do not form part of the structural integrity of the bridge so there is no concern with keeping the bridge open outside of these times and carrying traffic across Harvil Road.

To enable these Bridge surveys to be carried out as soon as is possible, HS2/SCS have agreed with LBH that they can close Harvil Road, 6 Nights a Week, between midnight and 5am over a 4-week period from Monday 17 February to Monday 17 March.

The road will be closed from Skip Lane junction to The Dogs Trust as shown on the Map below in blue.

During the road closures there will be a signed diversion route via the A40. A full road closure (rather than a lane closure) is required due to the width of the crane that will be used when surveying the bridge.

Herlwyn Avenue - Sandy Water from Groundwater Monitoring Well

There have been incidents of sandy water appearing on the road surface from a groundwater monitoring well/borehole on Herlwyn Avenue since Monday 26 June. This is the same location where a similar incident was reported earlier in June, and HS2 has issued further information on what they have done in monitoring the situation and engaging with residents on the matter.

HS2/SCS have confirmed to the council that Tunnel Boring Machine Caroline has passed through this location and is now more than 35 metres further along the tunnelling route (heading towards West End Road).

For further information, see the HS2 update notification.

HS2 Hillingdon newsletter

The HS2 Hillingdon newsletter June 2023 (PDF, 820 KB) covers the HS2 project in Hillingdon and is published by HS2.

It includes an update on the works in Hillingdon, information on local engagement events, and recent community investment projects in the borough.

HS2 ANPR camera installations

Residents may notice ANPR cameras being installed at 15 locations on roads across the north of the borough as part of the HS2 vehicle route compliance system being rolled out in Hillingdon. These ANPR cameras once operational will capture real-time data of HS2 lorries to make sure these vehicles are using the HS2 approved lorry routes. The system will also be able to provide accurate HS2 lorry numbers at any location on the network and it is hoped this data will help HS2 in policing lorries that are are non-compliant.

These cameras will be configured to only capture data related to HS2 lorries, no other vehicle data will be captured or stored. This is part of a network of cameras being rolled out across those London Boroughs that have HS2 sites and will be managed by HS2/SCS, with a dashboard being developed to allow the council access to the data. The system is to undergo a period of testing and is expected to be 'live' before summer 2023.

The cameras are being installed at all site entrance and exits in Hillingdon and on lamp columns at the following locations across the road network (please click on the map below for a larger version):

• Moorhall Road - junction with Harvil Road
• Moorhall Road
• Field End Road - near Halfords
• Field End Road - near Esso Garage
• Victoria Road
• Woodstock Drive
• Ickenham Road
• Long Lane
• Swakeleys Road - Westbound
• Swakeleys Road - Eastbound
• Station Approach
• West End Road
• Breakspear Road South
• Swakeleys Roundabout
• Harvil Road

Once the camera network is operational and in the testing phase, the council will look at the feasibility of additional camera locations to capture off-route HS2 lorries travelling around areas such as Breakspear Road and Newyears Green Lane (if the HS2 site cameras at these Locations do not provide the necessary coverage required).

The cameras will look similar to the image below, and each lamp column holding a camera will have the HS2 signage as shown below (to make it easily identifiable as to what they are there for):

Foam at Ruislip Rugby Club

On the morning of Saturday 18 February 2023, members of the public contacted the HS2 helpdesk to report that foam was appearing from the ground in an area of the Ruislip Rugby Club playing fields. The foam was cleared on the same day.

HS2 have produced this  guidance document (PDF, 127 KB) to answer commonly asked questions about the incident that occurred at Ruislip Rugby Club.

Hillingdon Council statement on HS2 injunction

On Monday 28 March 2022, HS2 Ltd applied to the High Court of Justice to secure a route-wide injunction relating to activity that would be prejudicial to construction and delivery of HS2 on various parcels of land.  The council learned of the injunction on Thursday 5 May 2022 and has been in dialogue with HS2 Ltd as to implications and coverage of it. Accompanying the application was a series of plans setting out the areas to be covered by the injunction should the courts grant it. These plans mark out 2 different areas - land identified as being 'SOS Permanent Possession Land/ HS2 Acquired Land' and land presented as being 'Temporary Possession Land S15/S16'. 

Unfortunately, the area presented as being 'SOS Permanent Possession Land/HS2 Acquired Land' has led to a misunderstanding as to the current ownership of large parcels of land in Hillingdon. In particular, Park Lodge Farm and Ruislip Golf Course have both been included in this description, giving the impression that this land is no longer in the ownership of the council. For clarity, these areas of land, except for sections already taken by HS2 Ltd and being used for construction), have not passed into the ownership of the Secretary of State, or HS2 Ltd. 

Both sites remain in the possession of Hillingdon Council, but are currently leased to HS2 Ltd. 

HS2 Ltd is in discussion with the council about surrendering the lease and returning Park Lodge Farm, minus the areas required for HS2 construction and operation, back to the council.  Ruislip Golf Course, minus the areas required for HS2 construction and operation, is intended to remain under tenancy with HS2 Ltd until restoration of the golf course is complete. 

Further updates on the injunction will be provided once the courts have made a decision on the application.

Main site activities

Select the links below to view main site activities for each area.

• Colne Valley Viaduct area
• Harvil Road and Copthall area
• Breakspear Road area
• West Ruislip area