March TMD
Encyclopedia
March TMD was a railway Traction Maintenance Depot
situated near March
, England
. March was a steam
shed under British Railways with the depot code 31B; the depot code of the diesel depot under BR was MR. The nearest railway station is March
, and the depot was located close to the Whitemoor Marshalling Yard
. Despite its rural location, in the 1970s it accommodated a similar number of locomotives to the comparatively larger Toton TMD
and served as the main diesel depot for East Anglia
.
as part of the redevelopment of local railway facilities in the mid-1880s, when the construction of a new, larger station at March had meant that the earlier engine shed had had to be demolished. Construction of the new shed included realigning the branch line to Wisbech
further west and replacing a level crossing at Norwood Road with a bridge. The new shed was a brick built 6 track straight shed with a riple gable style slate roof. It was provided with the 2 northerly roads as through and the other 4 roads dead-ended on the west side. In 1900 a turntable was provided on the north side of the shed yard, being enlarged to 70 foot in 1925 when a corrugated asbestos clad 4 track straight through shed was added along the north side of the original building.
After the 1923 Grouping the London and North Eastern Railway
built a new locomotive shed in Hundred Road with a Mitchell Conveyor and Transporter Co mechanical coaling plant for the engines, with an associated electricity generating plant. The entire line became part of the Great Eastern Railway
in 1862. The former GER engine shed was retained to undertake heavy repairs. A brick built 5 track straight through washout shed was added in 1933. A water softener with a capacity of 11,700 gallons per hour was added in 1939, at a cost of over £12,000.
the shed was provided with an Illuminated Loco Inspection Pit, generally referred to as the Light Tunnel. This building contained six rows of tube lights, two on either wall and one on either side of the pit. This building remained in use until the end of steam.
were based at the depot by the early 1960s. Diesel locomotives were fuelled on site despite the lack of spillage trays and the timber beams of the old steam shed. In 1962 a steel-framed diesel depot was built on the site of the original shed, complete with spillage trays and oil drainage facilities. In 1987, the 4 track extension to the original shed was also demolished and replaced by a purpose built diesel facility.
Traction maintenance depot
In the United Kingdom, a traction maintenance depot, or TMD, is a railway depot where locomotives are serviced and maintained. A traction and rolling stock maintenance depot, or T&RSMD, is a maintenance depot where locomotives, multiple units and rolling stock are serviced and maintained. Each rail...
situated near March
March, Cambridgeshire
March is a Fenland market town and civil parish in the Isle of Ely area of Cambridgeshire, England. March was the county town of the Isle of Ely, a separate administrative county between 1889 and 1965, and is now the administrative centre of Fenland District Council.The town was an important...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. March was a steam
Steam locomotive
A steam locomotive is a railway locomotive that produces its power through a steam engine. These locomotives are fueled by burning some combustible material, usually coal, wood or oil, to produce steam in a boiler, which drives the steam engine...
shed under British Railways with the depot code 31B; the depot code of the diesel depot under BR was MR. The nearest railway station is March
March railway station
March railway station serves the town of March in Cambridgeshire, England. The station is east of Peterborough on the Ely to Peterborough Line....
, and the depot was located close to the Whitemoor Marshalling Yard
Classification yard
A classification yard or marshalling yard is a railroad yard found at some freight train stations, used to separate railroad cars on to one of several tracks. First the cars are taken to a track, sometimes called a lead or a drill...
. Despite its rural location, in the 1970s it accommodated a similar number of locomotives to the comparatively larger Toton TMD
Toton TMD
Toton Traction Maintenance Depot is one of the largest rail depots in the United Kingdom. Toton TMD is bordered by Long Eaton and Sandiacre in Derbyshire and Toton in Nottinghamshire...
and served as the main diesel depot for East Anglia
East Anglia
East Anglia is a traditional name for a region of eastern England, named after an ancient Anglo-Saxon kingdom, the Kingdom of the East Angles. The Angles took their name from their homeland Angeln, in northern Germany. East Anglia initially consisted of Norfolk and Suffolk, but upon the marriage of...
.
History
March Shed was built by the Great Eastern RailwayGreat Eastern Railway
The Great Eastern Railway was a pre-grouping British railway company, whose main line linked London Liverpool Street to Norwich and which had other lines through East Anglia...
as part of the redevelopment of local railway facilities in the mid-1880s, when the construction of a new, larger station at March had meant that the earlier engine shed had had to be demolished. Construction of the new shed included realigning the branch line to Wisbech
Wisbech
Wisbech is a market town, inland port and civil parish with a population of 20,200 in the Fens of Cambridgeshire. The tidal River Nene runs through the centre of the town and is spanned by two bridges...
further west and replacing a level crossing at Norwood Road with a bridge. The new shed was a brick built 6 track straight shed with a riple gable style slate roof. It was provided with the 2 northerly roads as through and the other 4 roads dead-ended on the west side. In 1900 a turntable was provided on the north side of the shed yard, being enlarged to 70 foot in 1925 when a corrugated asbestos clad 4 track straight through shed was added along the north side of the original building.
After the 1923 Grouping the London and North Eastern Railway
London and North Eastern Railway
The London and North Eastern Railway was the second-largest of the "Big Four" railway companies created by the Railways Act 1921 in Britain...
built a new locomotive shed in Hundred Road with a Mitchell Conveyor and Transporter Co mechanical coaling plant for the engines, with an associated electricity generating plant. The entire line became part of the Great Eastern Railway
Great Eastern Railway
The Great Eastern Railway was a pre-grouping British railway company, whose main line linked London Liverpool Street to Norwich and which had other lines through East Anglia...
in 1862. The former GER engine shed was retained to undertake heavy repairs. A brick built 5 track straight through washout shed was added in 1933. A water softener with a capacity of 11,700 gallons per hour was added in 1939, at a cost of over £12,000.
World War Two
March Shed was considered of strategic importance in both operational and national level. The LNER diesel shunters, locomotives which included a large switching board at the rear of the cab to enable them to be used as mobile power stations in the event of bomb damage affecting local supplies, were delivered new to March. Due to locomotive examination problems caused by the wartime blackoutBlackout (wartime)
A blackout during war, or apprehended war, is the practice of collectively minimizing outdoor light, including upwardly directed light. This was done in the 20th century to prevent crews of enemy aircraft from being able to navigate to their targets simply by sight, for example during the London...
the shed was provided with an Illuminated Loco Inspection Pit, generally referred to as the Light Tunnel. This building contained six rows of tube lights, two on either wall and one on either side of the pit. This building remained in use until the end of steam.
Dieselisation
With the arrival of diesel shunters, Roads 1 and 2 were dedicated for their use. As more diesel locomotives entered service the first four roads were partitioned off, with all diesel maintenance and repairs taking place there. Forty Brush Type 2 dieselsBritish Rail Class 31
The British Rail Class 31 diesel locomotives, also known as the Brush Type 2 and originally as Class 30, were built by Brush Traction from 1957-62.- Description :...
were based at the depot by the early 1960s. Diesel locomotives were fuelled on site despite the lack of spillage trays and the timber beams of the old steam shed. In 1962 a steel-framed diesel depot was built on the site of the original shed, complete with spillage trays and oil drainage facilities. In 1987, the 4 track extension to the original shed was also demolished and replaced by a purpose built diesel facility.
Shed codes
The following shed codes have been used to identify locomotives allocated to March:| 31B | British Railways | from 1949 |
|---|---|---|
| MR | British Rail | from 1973 |