Delivering London 2012: power lines undergrounding

The complex and challenging project to move two sets of existing power lines from pylons into tunnels was fundamental to unlocking the Olympic Park site for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. As the first major construction project for the games, the careful planning, collaborative working and innovation used by the project team set a benchmark for all subsequent contracts on the park. This paper describes the fundamentals of the project, which included ten shafts and 13 km of tunnels in difficult ground, as well as the challenges that were overcome and the key features of success.