Balfour Beatty completes work on King's Cross extension

Construction group Balfour Beatty has completed work on a multimillion-pound improvement scheme at London's King's Cross station designed to future-proof the station and improve services for passengers.

Delivered alongside its partners in the Central Rail Systems Alliance (CRSA), which includes companies such as Network Rail, Atkins and TSO, the King's Cross Remodeling Project forms part of a wider £1.2 billion (€1.4 billion) project known as the "East Coast Upgrade" scheme, which will see new lines added to connect London, Cambridge, the North of England and Scotland.

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The scheme is set to extend existing stations to allow for a greater number of passengers and cars in a bid to reduce congestion and bring more reliable journeys onto the table.

The King's Cross part of this project commenced in 2018 and began with the construction firm replacing 40-year-old tracks as well as redesigning the layout of the 1.5-mile (2.4 km) approach into the station.

It also oversaw the reopening of a disused tunnel out of operation for 44 years as well as the construction of two additional lines into the station from the north.

In total, 6 km (3.7 miles) of new track was added to lines heading into and out of King's Cross, alongside more than 30 new sets of points, 1 km of slab track and more than 2 km (1.2 miles) of track drainage.

These initial investments should allow for greater punctuality for passengers and allow for the station to deal with the increasing volumes of commuters going into and out of London every day.

Alan Atkins, King's Cross Remodelling Programme and Central Rail Systems Alliance Director said: “I am delighted that our Alliance has successfully and safely completed this incredible programme of works to remodel King's Cross Station, on schedule and to budget.

“We’re incredibly proud and privileged to have led this iconic project which will significantly benefit many passengers for years to come through increased capacity, reduced journey times and more reliable journeys.”

Overall, the project should increase reliability for trains across the entirety of the East Coast of England and Southern Scotland.

Across the entire route, 600 km (372 miles) of new electric cabling will be placed along the routes, which should enable the use of electric-powered carriages in a bid to reduce carbon emissions from the UK's public transport.

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Work outside of London on the project commenced in 2019 with a 126m extension to the line in Stevenage, Hertfordshire.

A few months later, an 11,000 tonne 155m tunnel extension project in Werrington, Peterborough was completed to allow for greater line connections along the proposed routes. It was pushed into place along the eastern mainline in early 2021 and is set to open in November.

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