• Our booking engine at tickets.railforums.co.uk (powered by TrainSplit) helps support the running of the forum with every ticket purchase! Find out more and ask any questions/give us feedback in this thread!

Plans for Maidstone depot

Status
Not open for further replies.

traingeek97

Member
Joined
7 Jun 2020
Messages
85
Location
Kent
Overheard two Southeastern drivers discussing plans for a new Maidstone depot. Not sure if this will be for drivers or conductors - or whether it will be SE or GTR (for when/if Cambridge services begin).

Has anyone else heard the same?
 
Sponsor Post - registered members do not see these adverts; click here to register, or click here to log in
R

RailUK Forums

DA1

Member
Joined
22 May 2017
Messages
401
Location
England
Can’t see this happening. Didn’t Ashford recruit GTR drivers with the aim of them doing the Cambridge services?
I know there are plans to reopen Chart Leacon in Ashford to create a few more roads there but other than that not much else (even though we need more space).
 

bramling

Veteran Member
Joined
5 Mar 2012
Messages
17,685
Location
Hertfordshire / Teesdale
Can’t see this happening. Didn’t Ashford recruit GTR drivers with the aim of them doing the Cambridge services?
I know there are plans to reopen Chart Leacon in Ashford to create a few more roads there but other than that not much else (even though we need more space).

It’s a bit of an odd one, as GTR are going to have Cambridge to Maidstone services, yet a handful of services will start and finish at Ashford purely for stabling reasons. So logically you’d have the crews at Maidstone as that’s where the bulk of reliefs would be, but normally crew depots tend to be where the stabling points are, which would point to Ashford.

Cambridge - Maidstone has gone rather quiet, though there’s a small local fuss still being made about it on the Kent side. Has any work been done on converting Chart Leacon? That would perhaps the clue that something is actually moving, though this doesn’t of course mean it will be a through Cambridge service that materialises.
 

westcoaster

Established Member
Joined
4 Dec 2006
Messages
4,223
Location
DTOS A or B
It’s a bit of an odd one, as GTR are going to have Cambridge to Maidstone services, yet a handful of services will start and finish at Ashford purely for stabling reasons. So logically you’d have the crews at Maidstone as that’s where the bulk of reliefs would be, but normally crew depots tend to be where the stabling points are, which would point to Ashford.

Cambridge - Maidstone has gone rather quiet, though there’s a small local fuss still being made about it on the Kent side. Has any work been done on converting Chart Leacon? That would perhaps the clue that something is actually moving, though this doesn’t of course mean it will be a through Cambridge service that materialises.
Ashford drivers also operate the sevenoaks/orpington to blackfriars trains. Getting them from maidstone to sevenoaks would be a pain.
 

CFRAIL

Member
Joined
17 May 2019
Messages
232
SE are in the process of taking on a large number of drivers for Ashford (around 30 I heard) and I've heard there are plans for a conductor depot at Maidstone (East I believe).
 

traingeek97

Member
Joined
7 Jun 2020
Messages
85
Location
Kent
SE are in the process of taking on a large number of drivers for Ashford (around 30 I heard) and I've heard there are plans for a conductor depot at Maidstone (East I believe).

Thanks @CFRAIL. They're hiring 'Trainee Conductors' for Ashford at the moment.
 

Need2

Member
Joined
15 Jun 2016
Messages
595
Every thing I’m about to say is what I understand it to be so it could be wholly inaccurate, slightly inaccurate, correct or a mixture of all!

The Maidstone depot, as I understand it, will be at Chart Leacon (when it is finished!) and is/will be a SE depot.
The Thameslink services (currently at Ashford depot doing Sev to Bfr only) from Maidstone East to Cambridge (which have been mothballed again!) will need to be run from here, otherwise it would appear that the service cannot get started.
I’ve heard that SE are not playing ball over ‘sharing’ so who knows what will happen.
Taking into account the government ‘taking over’ the tocs, anything can and probably will happen in the future.
 

traingeek97

Member
Joined
7 Jun 2020
Messages
85
Location
Kent
Every thing I’m about to say is what I understand it to be so it could be wholly inaccurate, slightly inaccurate, correct or a mixture of all!

The Maidstone depot, as I understand it, will be at Chart Leacon (when it is finished!) and is/will be a SE depot.
The Thameslink services (currently at Ashford depot doing Sev to Bfr only) from Maidstone East to Cambridge (which have been mothballed again!) will need to be run from here, otherwise it would appear that the service cannot get started.
I’ve heard that SE are not playing ball over ‘sharing’ so who knows what will happen.
Taking into account the government ‘taking over’ the tocs, anything can and probably will happen in the future.

That's good to know, thank you! If that was the case would crew book on at Maidstone and then travel to Chart Leacon?
 

whoosh

Established Member
Joined
3 Sep 2008
Messages
1,360
Here's a curveball...it's not the other Maidstone is it?!

I think the Maidstone West Line is crewed from Gillingham and Tonbridge, but could it be better resourced from Maidstone West?

Throw that one into the rumour mill!
 

Dr Hoo

Established Member
Joined
10 Nov 2015
Messages
3,910
Location
Hope Valley
Some of us can remember when Maidstone West depot was 'folded' into Gillingham back in the 1980s and the land flogged off after the sidings were lifted.
 

Peregrine 4903

Established Member
Joined
18 Aug 2019
Messages
1,443
Location
London
It’s a bit of an odd one, as GTR are going to have Cambridge to Maidstone services, yet a handful of services will start and finish at Ashford purely for stabling reasons. So logically you’d have the crews at Maidstone as that’s where the bulk of reliefs would be, but normally crew depots tend to be where the stabling points are, which would point to Ashford.

Cambridge - Maidstone has gone rather quiet, though there’s a small local fuss still being made about it on the Kent side. Has any work been done on converting Chart Leacon? That would perhaps the clue that something is actually moving, though this doesn’t of course mean it will be a through Cambridge service that materialises.
I don't personally think the Cambridge - Maidstone East service will ever happen.
 

DA1

Member
Joined
22 May 2017
Messages
401
Location
England
Here's a curveball...it's not the other Maidstone is it?!

I think the Maidstone West Line is crewed from Gillingham and Tonbridge, but could it be better resourced from Maidstone West?

Throw that one into the rumour mill!

Medway Valley also has Slade Green drivers
 

4-SUB 4732

Established Member
Joined
7 Jan 2018
Messages
2,150
Maidstone West not happening.

Edited my comment. May 2022 Southeastern will run Maidstone East to Blackfriars to replace Thameslink. Victoria to Ashford will still run by the sounds of it.

Vast over-capacity on the Maidstone East line. It’s a Conductor depot at MDE.
 
Last edited:

DA1

Member
Joined
22 May 2017
Messages
401
Location
England
Maidstone West not happening.

Edited my comment. May 2022 Southeastern will run Maidstone East to Blackfriars to replace Thameslink. Victoria to Ashford will still run by the sounds of it.

Vast over-capacity on the Maidstone East line. It’s a Conductor depot at MDE.
That’s makes sense now. Maybe that’s where some of the networkers will be moving over to so they can run those services once the 707s are in service.
 

Need2

Member
Joined
15 Jun 2016
Messages
595
Maidstone West not happening.

May 2022 Southeastern will run Maidstone East to Blackfriars to replace Thameslink.
May I ask where you got this information from and what you mean by ‘replace thameslink’?
 

bramling

Veteran Member
Joined
5 Mar 2012
Messages
17,685
Location
Hertfordshire / Teesdale
I don't personally think the Cambridge - Maidstone East service will ever happen.

I have a suspicion it probably won’t either. The current KX to Cambridge service works reasonably well, and avoids the performance issues which running through the core would import to it, and in particular the reactionary impacts which would happen to other GN/TL services.

The current timetable relies on the KX to Cambridge service starting on time and having quantities of stand time at various locations.
 

4-SUB 4732

Established Member
Joined
7 Jan 2018
Messages
2,150
May I ask where you got this information from and what you mean by ‘replace thameslink’?

Well in theory in December 2018 and then May 2019 and then ‘tbc’, there was supposed to be a half-hourly Cambridge - Letchworth - Stevenage - Welwyn - Finsbury - Blackfriars - London Bridge - Swanley - Maidstone East service. A 700 / Thameslink one, anyway. Some peak trains would go to/from Ashford.

Well now, it’s basically never going to happen despite Cambridge driver depot having an actual “Maidstone link”, but Southeastern are therefore going to have to pick up the pieces and run a Blackfriars to Maidstone service via Catford.
 

Need2

Member
Joined
15 Jun 2016
Messages
595
Well in theory in December 2018 and then May 2019 and then ‘tbc’, there was supposed to be a half-hourly Cambridge - Letchworth - Stevenage - Welwyn - Finsbury - Blackfriars - London Bridge - Swanley - Maidstone East service. A 700 / Thameslink one, anyway. Some peak trains would go to/from Ashford.

Well now, it’s basically never going to happen despite Cambridge driver depot having an actual “Maidstone link”, but Southeastern are therefore going to have to pick up the pieces and run a Blackfriars to Maidstone service via Catford.
Thanks for that but is it your assumptions or have you heard, 2022 is a long way off? (In railway terms)
Whatever is or isn’t in the pipeline, if I were an Thameslink Ashford driver I would have a little worry in the back of my mind.
 

4-SUB 4732

Established Member
Joined
7 Jan 2018
Messages
2,150
Thanks for that but is it your assumptions or have you heard, 2022 is a long way off? (In railway terms)
Whatever is or isn’t in the pipeline, if I were an Thameslink Ashford driver I would have a little worry in the back of my mind.
You needn't worry. You will simply be folded into Southeastern under TUPE with your exceptionally good salary, vastly above that of your peers, and probably in a dedicated link.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Top