HS2’s Curzon Street station, which will be located in Birmingham, has received planning permission from the Birmingham City Council.
The council approved a total of three planning applications covering the new station as well as the surrounding landscape on 23 April.
The HS2 station will have net-zero operations and will incorporate environmentally friendly designs and technologies, such as rainwater harvesting and sustainable power generation. There will also be more than 2800 square metres of solar panels atop platform canopies. It is designed to meet a BREEAM excellent standard – though the HS2 Interchange station recently topped this by receiving an ‘outstanding’ classification.
Green Landscaping
The station will sit in a setting of parkland lawns, rain gardens to capture water, wildflower grassland, insect and bird boxes, ‘forest-scale’ tree planting across the site, and a new area of broadleaf woodland to give wildlife a habitat.
Architectural Heritage
The design incorporates the existing Grade 1-listed Old Curzon Street building. The two will be connected via the new station’s eastern concourse at New Canal Street. The nearby Grade II-listed Moor Street Station and the Woodman Pub are also taken into account in the design.
Public and Active Travel Connections
Passengers will be able to access the Midland Metro, which runs alongside and under the station. There will be accessible pedestrian routes to local and rapid transit bus services as well as to other train services. There will also be space to park more than 550 bicycles.
“We're extremely pleased to receive planning approval for HS2's Curzon Street station in Birmingham. Eco-friendly innovations are a fundamental part of our plans, with the station designed to achieve zero carbon emissions from day-to-day energy consumption. This makes it highly efficient by generating energy through a range of different technologies to maximise natural resources such as sunlight and water.”
Once HS2 is operating fully, the station will see nine trains per hour per direction.
The procurement process to find a company to build the station has already begun. The Invitation to Tender will likely launch this summer.
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