Work is continuing on an initiative to strengthen railway tunnels at Haymarket, Edinburgh. The work is being carried out ahead of a regeneration project.

A £200m development of retail, offices and hotels has been proposed for the site located above the tunnels, but before work can begin on the former goods yard, the tunnels underneath need to be reinforced. This includes grouting between the tunnel lining and the surrounding ground, plus inserting metal bars within the brick lining.

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A team of around 40 contractors are working through the night, over a period of 14 months, to deliver the scheme.

David Westwater, Interserve Development Director, is quoted as saying: "This work is the main challenge before we can begin construction above ground. It will be early next year before we can do that, but then people will soon start to see the development taking shape. After such a long time as a gap site, we're very excited about what The Haymarket has to offer and how it will help to create a real gateway at Edinburgh's west end."

Angus MacGregor, BAM Ritchies' Project Manager, said: "We are very well experienced in complex rail projects but every situation is unique, so we've had to develop a very specific approach for this work based on the skills and knowledge of our team. There are many constraints to working on this site, but we have made good progress so far thanks to the working relationship we have with our client and Network Rail."

(JP/CD)