Guidance

A non-technical guide to HS2 ground investigations

Information on the different types of ground investigations HS2 Ltd may need to undertake along the HS2 line of route.

Documents

HS2 ground investigations: a non-technical guide

Details

The aim of ground investigations is to provide data before the design and construction processes begin. Also to discover the properties, especially the strength, of the soils and rocks in a particular place, and the nature of the groundwater.

Ground investigations are the examination and study of the soil, rock and groundwater at the site of planned infrastructure and building projects.

A number of survey methods are used to obtain samples, including drilling boreholes, excavating pits or digging by hand around utility pipelines. Laboratory tests are carried out on many of the samples to supplement the information gathered on site.

Published 27 March 2015