The concrete substructure of the HSL is practically finished. The southern section and the most part of the northern section have been completed and made available to the building consortium Infraspeed, which is now building the superstructure, i.e. the rails, sound barriers, and safety and communication systems, on top of the concrete substructure.

The construction of the northern part of the route was delayed at an early stage of construction, and again in recent months. The initial delay was caused by the fact that neighbouring residents in Bergschenhoek had valid objections to the design of the semi-sunken open track in that location. As a result, the Minister and the Second Chamber of Parliament decided to make an even deeper cutting at the Berkelseweg road. This called for a new design and a different construction method (sheetpile walls and underwater concrete - for this building method, see: Rotterdam Noordrand Tunnel). This delayed the project with 9 months.

The recent delays have occurred because the installation of the fire-resistant lining in the bored tunnel under the Green Heart Area proved to be more labour-intensive than planned. In addition, the side beams of the no-recess slab had to be adjusted to improve the base of the sound barriers.

Recently completed constructions are:

• the Bleiswijk - elevated section over the A12 motorway;
• the Ringvaart Aqueduct;
• the tunnels and tunnel buildings at the Oude Maas and Dordsche Kil.      

Meanwhile, the Klaverpolder intersection has been opened for traffic again.

For the coming months and/or weeks, the following work on the substructure yet has to be completed:

• applying fire-resistant lining in the bored tunnel under the Green Heart Area;
• adjustment to side beams to improve the base of the sound barriers.            

The connections between the HSL track and the existing railways at Hoofddorp, Rotterdam and Breda are realised according to schedule. Much work is done for the timely realisation of the existing and new rail safety systems (EBS - ERTMS).

Between Rotterdam and the Belgian border, Infraspeed have commenced laying out the rails and installing the overhead wire masts (the superstructure) on a large scale. Similarly, work on the superstructure has also started on the section Hoofddorp - Rotterdam. Infraspeed's progress is on schedule.

Due to delays in the completion of parts of the substructure, Infraspeed could not start their work on the agreed date at all locations. Thanks to a number of management measures, this will cause no overrun of the schedule.

Infraspeed will need approximately a year to complete the superstructure. Then the test phase starts. First, Infraspeed will test the various systems independently, and then it will work together with the operator, High Speed Alliance (HSA) on tests to see if the trains and the rail system are completely compatible. To avoid unforeseen problems, Infraspeed and HSA are collaborating closely already.

Finally, the first train will transport passengers from Amsterdam, Rotterdam and Breda to the rest of Europe as of April 2007.