Footage shows completion of HS2’s longest tunnel beneath the chilterns

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Construction footage shows the completion of the Chiltern Tunnel, the longest tunnel on Britain’s High Speed 2 (HS2) rail network, marking a major milestone for the new high-speed railway. The milestone follows the completion of final works at the tunnel’s vent shafts at Chesham Road and Little Missenden, bringing to an end nearly five years of construction beneath the Chiltern Hills. Once railway tracks and overhead electrical equipment are installed, HS2 said trains will be able to travel through the 10-mile tunnel at speeds of up to 200 mph, allowing them to cross it in around three minutes. HS2 officials described the completion as a significant step forward for the project, which aims to improve rail capacity and connectivity between major UK cities. The exact date the footage was recorded could not be independently verified. Trains travelling at 200mph (322km/h)will take only three minutes to go through the 10-mile (16km) Chiltern tunnel, which runs under the Chiltern Hills in Buckinghamshire. HS2 Ltd's head of civil engineering for the project, Mark Clapp, paid tribute to "everyone involved" and claimed their "hard work" would "stand the test of time". The HS2 project aims to link London with Birmingham by high-speed rail, with a completion date yet to be finalised.