Greater Anglia to build £70m depot to house new trains
CONSTRUCTION of a new maintenance depot for Greater Anglia will begin in August, with the first trains arriving for commissioning in December 2018.
The £70 million, 22-acre facility at Brantham (near Manningtree) will be constructed on the site of a former BX Plastics factory adjacent to the Down Main on the Great Eastern Main Line.
Greater Anglia Managing Director Jamie Burles, speaking at the site on February 10, said: “We need this depot. We need to march on. It must be ready for December 2018 - if not the new train plan will fall apart. There is no plan B, so we have to get it right.”
The depot will feature 15 roads, two of which will be covered in a 300-metre shed fitted with full under-train inspection pits and cranes. A wheel lathe will also be installed at the site. This will be the first one operated by GA, which has previously had to hire in space from Bombardier at Ilford.
Other facilities will include a train wash, remote train monitoring systems, a control room and spares room. The entire depot will be fully electrified.
The facility will be used for stabling and light maintenance of around 20 new Stadler trains that will be delivered from 2019. The first trains are due in spring 2018,
according to the manufacturer (see feature, pages 102-107).
A minimum of 30 people will be recruited to work at the depot, and Burles said GA was working on the idea that more staff will be based there. He explained that the company was exploring the possibility of a driver base at the depot, although he added that GA needed to “make sure that was the right thing to do”.
The land is owned by St Francis Group, and work will start imminently on clearing what is currently a derelict site. GA said work on design and construction planning has begun.
“These are exciting plans which are integral to our commitment to improve and transform the railway in East Anglia,” said Burles.
“Providing a depot at Manningtree will enable us to bring in our ambitious new timetable with more frequent trains and reduced journey times. It also reduces the amount of time that trains are out of service for maintenance.”
South Suffolk MP James Cartlidge said: “The Brantham industrial site has been largely derelict and decaying for many years. It was perhaps therefore understandable that local residents were sceptical if Babergh District Council’s plans to regenerate the site would ever deliver new highquality commercial occupants.
“In fact, we have a very substantive and long-term commitment from a major international business creating skilled job opportunities in the local area.”
Taylor Woodrow will design and build the depot. Rail Sector Director Fred Garner told RAIL: “This important project will benefit from the skills and expertise Taylor Woodrow has gained building a similar facility for Crossrail."