Reading TMD
Reading TMD is a railway Traction Maintenance Depot situated in Reading, England, and operated by First Great Western. The depot code is RG.
Location
The old depot (until mid 2012) was situated to the west of Reading station and to the north of Reading West station. It was located within the triangle of lines formed by the Great Western main line to the north, the curve from Reading West to Reading to the east, and the curve connecting Reading West to the westbound main line to the west.
With the rebuilding of Reading Station and the remodeling of the track, the depot was moved from the triangle to a brand new facility located on the other side (to the North) of the main running lines, next to the fields where the Reading Festival is held each year. This new depot opened in mid 2012 and is home to First Great Western's fleet of Class 165 & 166 Network Turbos, and two Class 150s used on the Basingstoke shuttle (150 001/002). As part of the construction, the preliminary equipment for electrification of the Great Western Main Line was installed, although no conductor wires are as of yet installed. it is intended that this new depot will also be able to handle Cross Rail Stock once it is delivered.
The old depot was subsequently demolished apart from 2 Great Western Railway era water towers, one of which has been donated to West Somerset Railway (WSR). The site is being used as part of the southern approach to the new fly over for primarily fast passenger trains so that their movements don't conflict with freight trains coming from Southampton along the future "Electric Spine."
Changes in 2012
Quote from Reading Station News:[1]
"Work has started on a new traincare depot which is a major part of Network Rail's improvements to the railway around Reading. The depot will be a replacement for the existing one, currently situated west of the station. When Network Rail finish the new depot in summer 2013, the existing depot will be demolished to make way for the planned viaduct that will provide new tracks and help end the bottle-neck of rail traffic in Reading".
See also
- 21st Century modernisation of the Great Western Main Line
- Reading railway station#Future
References
- ↑ Reading Station News, Issue 2, March 2012, page 3, published by First Great Western
- Rail Atlas Great Britain & Ireland, S.K. Baker ISBN 0-86093-553-1
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Reading Traincare Depot. |
- An overhead view of the old depot.
Coordinates: 51°27′32″N 0°59′15″W / 51.4589°N 0.9876°W