Sneak Preview of UK’s New Intercity Express Depot

Reservists at Chetwynd Barracks, based in Nottinghamshire, UK, were recently able to enjoy a special early preview of RPS’ newly designed Doncaster Carr depot for Hitachi Rail.

The Doncaster Carr site in Yorkshire has accommodated a rail depot consistently for over 100 years under various ownerships before Hitachi Rail’s purchase of the site in 2014 to serve its new fleet of 65 Class 800 Series Intercity Express long-distance trains on the East Coast Mainline network. The Class 800 hybrid trains are expected to run from 2018 as part of the UK Department for Transport’s multi-billion-pound Intercity Express Programme. It replaces the previous Intercity 125 high-speed fleet serving the line since the 1970s with a mix of up-to-the-minute electric/diesel and electric only vehicles (Series 800 and 801).

Due to be officially opened later this year, the new rail maintenance, trainwash and storage depot covers 11,000m² alongside the delivery of a new two-storey office, and a top-end workshop and welfare facility. RPS provided architectural and structural engineering design services for the depot. The depot was constructed by VolkerFitzpatrick and received a British Safety Council International Safety Award last year.

The Reservists were from 507 Specialist Team Royal Engineers (Railways Infrastructure), a Reserve sub-unit of 170 Engr Gp and the only rail infrastructure specialists in the Armed Forces. Principal Engineer Dale Hack from RPS Newark presented the Reservists with a detailed insight into the complexity of the project and our innovative design solutions before the guided tour.

Newark currently employs four Reservists and has developed a strong relationship with the Ministry of Defence’s 170 (Infrastructure Support) Engineer Group under the Armed Forces Corporate Covenant recognising the valuable skills serving personnel, regular armed forces personnel and reservists can bring to business whilst accommodating their military obligations.