A train-sized tunnel is now carrying electricity under South London

No flashy product launch, no app, just "we quietly replaced a 1960s failure point before it failed."

Anyone have any idea why the cables are arranged like this? https://8400e186.delivery.rocketcdn.me/articles/wp-content/u...

What's the zig-zag pattern for, seems like a fair bit of extra conductor.

Impressive piece of work, first time I’ve heard of this.

I had heard that tunnels were a good first step for rolling out super conducting cables, but that doesn’t seem to be a thing.

Superconducting cables have progressed a lot. I’m assuming that setting up a cryogenic system to keep cables cool enough, in a confined space wasn’t thought to be worth it.

The tunnels look tight enough, and boiling liquid nitrogen from a leak could cause asphyxiation I imagine.

"In total, the £1 billion London Power Tunnels 2 (LPT2) project, which began in 2019, spans 32.5km across seven South London boroughs from Wimbledon to Hurst."

In spite of devolution and the so called "levelling up" programme for other parts of the UK, London obviously continues to be heavily subsidised by the rest of the UK.

Cables on overhead high voltage lines are mounted using stacks of ceramic insulators, but here they seemingly just sleeved in some protection and hang on a tunnel wall. Why is that?

essentialy no choice in putting infrastructure underground as the cost's and delays in putting a power corridor right of way through is unthinkable, they will almost certainly be useing old established locations for transformer substations that have the required set backs and other services, which must from time to time, come to the frenzied attention of developers, agast ,that they cant relieve someone of this "vacant" land

So Everywhere else in Britain it is 'too expensive' to put cables underground. Just goes to show how London centric this country is.