First HS2 viaduct completed in Northamptonshire

The final section of the structure, the parapets, has just been installed at the sides of the beams

A viaduct in Northamptonshire has become the first on the HS2 project to be completed.

The 162m (178 yard) Highfurlong Brook Viaduct is near the village of Aston le Walls.

The structure has seven spans, each made up of four beams weighing up to 56 tonnes.

The HS2 project client director, Bill Price, described the completion as a "major moment for the HS2 project".

The high speed rail line, which will link London and Birmingham and crosses south Northamptonshire, will have about 500 bridging structures.

Some will only be a few metres long, crossing drainage culverts or rural roads, but the viaduct, north-west of Brackley, is close to the other end of the scale.

It will cross the Highfurlong Brook flood plain at a height of about nine metres (10 yards).

The basic frame of seven spans is made up of 28 beams which were manufactured off-site and lifted into position last year.

The deck, on which the track and electrical systems will sit, was poured on site earlier this year.

The parapets along each side were manufactured elsewhere and have been installed over the last four months.

The four beams which make up each span were put into position at the end of last year

Mr Price said: “It’s great to see Highfurlong Brook finished and I look forward to seeing many more of our viaducts, bridges, stations and tunnels come together over the next few years.”

Scott Corsar, project manager for the contractors EKFB, said: “We have achieved many ‘firsts’ with Highfurlong Viaduct, from the first viaduct to have its full deck installed to the first structurally complete viaduct on the HS2 programme following the recent installation of 136 parapets."

People living near HS2 construction sites in Northamptonshire have complained about traffic delays and scars on the landscape, although some communities have benefitted from HS2 funding for village halls and playgrounds.

Each beam weighs about 56 tonnes

The next phase of construction will include delivering the earthworks that support the railway at either end before a separate set of contractors comes in to install the track, signalling, power and communications systems.

HS2 is expected to start operating between 2029 and 2033.