A brand-new, 10 million GBP rail maintenance depot has been unveiled at Guide Bridge, Greater Manchester.

The new facility will now be home to more than 120 Network Rail staff, and was built over the course of the last year.

Situated on a former 2.3-acre railway siding; the site will bring four separate track maintenance teams under one roof, all of which were previously based in temporary cabins in the same location.

Network Rail has stated hopes that the new building, which came in 6 million GBP under budget, will enable better collaboration and faster response times to fix railway faults.

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.

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.

The building has been built to modern accessibility standards, with a lift between floors, accessible toilet and changing rooms. The male locker room features 120 lockers, whilst the female locker room has 20, and both come with showering and toilet facilities, while the mess room has capacity for 100 staff at any one time.

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An array of 60 solar panels on the depot’s roof will provide approximately 44% of its energy, with a buy-back scheme set to be introduced so it can generate revenue with any surplus being supplied back to National Grid.

Additionally, ten new electric vehicle charging points have also been installed at the depot as part of Network Rail’s commitment to move to all-electric vehicles in the future.