Written Question·Department for Transport·UIN 120916

Tunnels: Construction

Tabled: 16 March 2026
Answered: 24 March 2026

Question

Mr Richard Holden

Conservative — Basildon and Billericay

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of the use of Norwegian-style drill-and-blast tunnelling methods in the construction of UK transport tunnels; and whether she has considered the u

Answer

Simon Lightwood
Norwegian style drill and blast tunnelling is generally suited to continuous hardrock geology that is not characteristic of most interurban routes in the UK. Instead, the latter frequently involves tunnelling through highly variable ground conditions incl...
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