AN £80 MILLION development milestone was celebrated at Stoke Gifford at Hitachi Rail Europe’s topping out ceremony with construction of a major new depot well underway.

The event took place on Friday, January 23 where guests were invited to celebrate the completion of the external building envelope at the Stoke Gifford Train Maintenance Centre currently under construction by firm VolkerFitzpatrick.

Guests celebrated the significant milestone of the new depot, at Filton Triangle, which started in August 2013.

The new depot for the electric rail line between London and South Wales, for the Intercity Express Programme on the new Great Western Main Line, is being built to service up to 34 small trains or 16 larger ones a day.

Representatives of the Department for Transport and local government attended the event to be given a tour of the site and be informed of the progress of the work, hosted by Andy Barr, chief operating officer at Hitachi Rail Europe and Paul Lilley, contracts manager at VolkerFitzpatrick.

Mr Barr said: “Today’s event marks a key development in the build progress at our Stoke Gifford Train Maintenance Facility. Tasked with housing and maintaining the Class 800/801 Great Western Main Line fleet, it will play a crucial role in ensuring our rolling stock delivers the optimum level of service to passengers on the route.

“I can’t emphasise enough how much we value the hard work of VolkerFitzpatrick and the local supply chain in delivering this ground-breaking facility.”

The new facility will support and maintain the Class 800/801 trains the company is delivering through Agility Trains for the Department for Transport’s £5.7bn Intercity Express Programme.

These trains will be running on the Great Western Main Line from 2017.

Mr Lilley: “We are very proud to have been awarded the contracts to build three rail depots for Hitachi Rail Europe. By working in collaboration with Hitachi Rail Europe, stakeholders and our supply chain we can demonstrate the one team approach that is critical in the successful delivery of these rail depot projects.

“We look forward to spreading our success and close collaboration to ensure there is a lasting legacy of support when the construction works are completed.”

The depot will operate seven days a week with maintenance work being carried out in enclosed building to reduce noise disturbance to nearby residents.

A seven-metre noise bund will protect residents from disturbance and Hitachi is paying for community improvements as part of the development including refurbishing cycle paths and installing new park benches.

Rail minister Claire Perry said: “We are investing record amounts building a world-class railway as part of our long term economic plan. Hitachi’s new InterCity Express trains will provide more seats, more services and better journeys for passengers, transforming train travel for thousands along the Great Western Main Line.

“I congratulate Hitachi for making the investment, which will ensure that these new trains are maintained to the highest standard."

Media relations and public affairs manager for Hitachi Rail, Daniela Karthaus, said: “Today has really shown the progress made so far and how we have made huge steps, considering the time we have had.

“We are really on schedule which is a very positive thing and a lot of the good work is based on the good relationship we have with the community here. People are living close to the site and it would always impact on them, but they have been really good and we are so grateful that they have put up with us this far.”

Once completed, the state-of-the-art depot will comprise a maintenance building, office and staff accommodation space, stabling and servicing roads, and a carriage wash machine.

The construction work is scheduled to be finished by the end of 2015.