Video: tour Colchester depot

Colchester depot has been upgraded with new train servicing facilities, as part of Greater Anglia’s £1.4 billion fleet replacement programme. The changes will enable it to help maintain the operator’s new bi-mode trains.

Watch the video, below:

Two 40,000L fuel tanks, a 14T sanding storage tower, a 10,000L AdBlue storage tank and a sand dispenser were installed as part of the upgrade, along with new toilet emptying equipment.

New fuel and toilet water system pumps, along with new walkways, have also been put in place as part of the improvements. The new equipment at the depot allows ten trains a day to be serviced at the Colchester site.

Eight Class 755 bi-mode trains will be cleaned, refuelled, have screen wash topped up, toilets emptied and water refilled. Sanding equipment can also be topped up.

Related: Watch a video of the design and sound-recording of Hornby's Class 755 model

Previously, seven trains a day used to go to temporary fuelling facilities either within Colchester station or to Ipswich or, in some cases even as far as Norwich’s Crown Point depot when refilling of the specialist sanding equipment on-board was needed – all of which took extra time and used extra electricity and energy.

With the new facilities in place, those extra journeys are unnecessary, providing additional flexibility in service operations and increased resilience in service provision. Two Class 720 electric commuter trains will also have their toilets emptied using the new equipment, along with a wash and clean, before going out into service the next day.

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