Network Rail maintenance depot opens at Guide Bridge site

As reported by Railway News, the Network Rail maintenance depot at Guide Bridge in Greater Manchester has opened. The project involved a 10 million GBP investment. Also, the site will now serve as a base for more than 120 employees. Meanwhile, it was built over the past year.

Network Rail maintenance depot brings teams together

The new rail maintenance facility stands on a former 2.3-acre railway siding. At the same time, it brings four track maintenance teams under one roof. In addition, those teams had been working from temporary cabins on the same site. Separately, Network Rail said the project came in 6 million GBP under budget. Also, it is expected to improve collaboration. Meanwhile, it should help teams respond more quickly to railway faults.

Clare Waller, Network Rail’s interim North West route director, said:

It’s fantastic to see this new depot at Guide Bridge now in use and provide modern facilities for the teams based there so they can respond to incidents and maintain the railway for passengers and freight in Greater Manchester.

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The teams have worked across multiple temporary buildings and not the best of environments for many years, so I’m sure this new striking building with top-notch accommodation will make a massive difference to them and the work they are able to achieve.

Guide Bridge depot includes accessible staff facilities

The building was developed to modern accessibility standards. For example, it includes a lift between floors, an accessible toilet, and changing rooms. Also, the male locker room has 120 lockers. Meanwhile, the female locker room has 20. In addition, both include shower and toilet facilities. At the same time, the mess room can accommodate 100 staff at any one time.

Greater Manchester site adds solar panels and EV charging

An array of 60 solar panels on the roof is expected to provide around 44% of the depot’s energy. In addition, a buy-back scheme is set to be introduced. Also, surplus electricity can be supplied back to National Grid and generate revenue. Separately, the Guide Bridge site also includes ten electric vehicle charging points. Meanwhile, this reflects Network Rail’s commitment to move to all-electric vehicles in the future.

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