Stoke Gifford intercity express depot
VolkerRail was appointed by sister company VolkerFitzpatrick, to complete track, permanent way, overhead electrification (OLE), E&P and signalling works at Hitachi Rail Europe’s train maintenance facility in Stoke Gifford.
The depot, in Bristol, is one of three to house Hitachi Rail Europe's fleet of long-distance InterCity Express trains that operate on the Great Western. The depot provides a purpose built, state of the art facility, incorporating a ten car storage maintenance depot and carriage wash building along with associated rail infrastructure and three connections to the Great Western Main line.
The depot was built on a brown field site, previously used by a concrete aggregate recycling facility. This has meant extensive testing and checking for contaminants had to be carried out to ensure the site is appropriately remediated. Work completed by VolkerRail included the installation of 9km of track, 44 S&C units with associated Clamplocks and the connection of the new network to the existing mainline. The team also installed almost 200 OLE structures, 22 Isolating Switches and 12.5km of contact wire as well as the signalling power and point heating systems.