Planning permission has been granted by Solihull Metropolitan Borough Counicl for HS2's landmark interchange station in Solihull. The station will be at the heart of the HS2 network in the Midlands and has been designed to be eco-friendly.
In fact the project became the first railway station in the world to achieve 'Outstanding' certification in its design phase, awarded by the Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM). BREEAM is the world's leading sustainability assessment method for master-planning projects, and this award puts the new interchange station in the top 1% of buildings in the UK for eco-friendly credentials.
The team behind the plans for the station say the design ''draws upon the historic and agricultural character of the local area and delivers a strong sense of place and identity through its architectural form and the design of its landscape.''
Once constructed the interchange station will cut carbon through its use of natural ventilation, daylight, harvested rainwater and solar energy. The Automated People Mover which formed a part of the interchanges planning proposal will link to the NEC, Birmingham Airport and Birmingham International Station and will be capable of transporting up to 2,100 passengers every hour in each direction.
