St Pancras International Opens Its Doors

High Speed 1 (HS1), the first mainline railway to be constructed in Britain in over 100 years, began passenger service in November 2007. High speed trains originating from St Pancras International station will travel from London to Paris in 2 hours, 15 minutes, and from London to Brussels to under 2 hours. This article describes the scope of the project and how it was successfully completed on time and on budget. The success can be attributed to several factors: detailed planning with timely implementation; a consortium of construction and railroad companies, financiers, and utility suppliers working together; and a core group of senior executives that provided strong and consistent leadership. The project also benefited from knowledge and expertise gained from examining other railroad projects throughout the world.