Transport for London has announced that it has begun operations at a new train depot at Old Oak Common in a major milestone for London’s newest railway – the Elizabeth line.

The new depot will house and maintain up to 42 of the Elizabeth line’s 70 new trains at any one time.

The maintenance infrastructure at Old Oak Common will play a vital role in the day to day operation of the railway when it launches in seven months time.

Old Oak Common depot has come into service as Transport for London prepares to introduce TfL Rail services between London Paddington and Heathrow Terminals 2,3 and 4 from Sunday 20th May 2018 – this will take over the Heathrow Connect service.

30% of TfL’s new maintenance facility will be powered by renewable energy system.

The new energy system integrates ground source heating and cooling from a combination of energy piles and 150m deep boreholes. Old Oak Common is the first rail depot in the UK to introduce these measures. This will hopefully help TfL to reduce its running costs and CO2 emissions each year.

MTR Crossrail will operate the Elizabeth line on behalf of Transport for London. The majority of their drivers are now based at Old Oak Common.

Old Oak Common was built by Taylor Woodrow and has 33 stabling roads, and nine roads for the heavy maintenance of wheels, motors and other rail components. An on-site train wash facility will see that trains are deep-cleaned on a regular basis.

What did the officials say?

Howard Smith, Operations Director for TfL Rail and the Elizabeth line, said:

“It’s great to see the progress that has been made at Old Oak Common since work began four years ago. Our new depot will not only allow us to introduce our new TfL Rail service from Paddington to Heathrow Airport this month, but it will also be home to the new Elizabeth line train fleet. Old Oak Common will be vital in helping us to maintain our 70 brand new trains over the years to come.”

Andy Derbyshire, Head of UK Projects, Bombardier Transportation said:

“We are delighted to showcase the train testing and driver training operations already well underway at the new Old Oak Common depot. Our British-designed and built trains are transforming journeys between Liverpool Street and Shenfield, and are soon to do the same for journeys between Paddington and Hayes & Harlington. We are now really building momentum towards the launch of the Elizabeth line in December.”

Steve Murphy, MTR Crossrail’s Managing Director, said:

“The new driver depot at Old Oak Common provides a great environment for our driver team to work in collaboration with Bombardier to deliver reliable Elizabeth line services. The training simulators have been essential in providing route familiarisation and scenario based training for our drivers to be ready for Elizabeth line services from December 2018.”

Fred Garner, Sector Director – Rail, Taylor Woodrow, said: