::''Stonebridge Park Depot was also the historic name for part of

Wembley Intercity Depot Wembley Intercity Depot (alternatively, Wembley Brent Depot) is an Electric Traction Depot located in Wembley, London Borough of Brent, England. The depot is situated alongside Wembley Yard, on the eastern side of the West Coast Main Line, t ...

'' Stonebridge Park Depot is a stabling and maintenance depot for trains on the

Bakerloo line The Bakerloo line () is a London Underground line that goes from in suburban north-west London to in south London, via the West End. Printed in brown on the Tube map, it serves 25 stations, 15 of which are underground, over . It runs partl ...

of the

London Underground The London Underground (also known simply as the Underground or by its nickname the Tube) is a rapid transit system serving Greater London and some parts of the adjacent counties of Buckinghamshire, Essex and Hertfordshire in England. The ...

in England. It opened in 1979, as part of the restructuring that resulted in the Bakerloo line's Stanmore branch becoming part of the

Jubilee line The Jubilee line is a London Underground line that runs between in east London and in the suburban north-west, via the Docklands, South Bank and West End. Opened in 1979, it is the newest line on the Underground network, although some secti ...

. It is the main depot on the Bakerloo line, and has been used for stabling stock dating from 1938, 1959 and 1972. In addition, trains of 1972 Stock from the

Northern line The Northern line is a London Underground line that runs from North London to South London. It is printed in black on the Tube map. The Northern line is unique on the Underground network in having two different routes through central London, t ...

have been transferred to the depot temporarily for overhaul.

History

The

opened from

Baker Street Baker Street is a street in the Marylebone district of the City of Westminster in London. It is named after builder William Baker, who laid out the street in the 18th century. The street is most famous for its connection to the fictional detec ...

to Lambeth North in 1906, and trains were stabled and maintained at London Road Depot. This had been built on the site of a school for the Indigent Blind, and was accessed by a branch, leaving the running tunnels between Waterloo and Lambeth North stations. The line was extended to

Elephant and Castle The Elephant and Castle is an area around a major road junction in London, England, in the London Borough of Southwark. The name also informally refers to much of Walworth and Newington, due to the proximity of the London Underground stati ...

at the southern end, while at the northern end, it reached Queen's Park on 11 February 1915. A branch from Baker Street to Finchley Road was opened on 20 November 1939, and services were extended along the

Metropolitan line The Metropolitan line, colloquially known as the Met, is a London Underground line between in the City of London and and in Buckinghamshire, with branches to in Hertfordshire and in Hillingdon. Printed in magenta on the tube map, the lin ...

tracks to terminate at

Stanmore Stanmore is part of the London Borough of Harrow in London. It is centred northwest of Charing Cross, lies on the outskirts of the London urban area and includes Stanmore Hill, one of the highest points of London, at high. The district, whi ...

. Neasden Depot became the centre for maintenance of the trains, and London Road was downgraded to becoming stabling sidings. When plans were made to split the two northern branches of the Bakerloo, with the Stanmore branch becoming part of the

, it became necessary to provide new stabling and maintenance facilities for the truncated Bakerloo line, and a new depot was built at Stonebridge Park, which opened in 1979. This is located just to the north-west of

Stonebridge Park station Stonebridge or StoneBridge may refer to: Places * Stonebridge Estate (disambiguation) United Kingdom * Stonebridge, Essex, a hamlet * Stonebridge, London, an area in northwest London * Stonebridge, Norfolk, a village * Stonebridge, West Midland ...

, and has two main sheds. Tracks 31 to 38 are furthest west, and are equipped with pits between the rails. The second building covers tracks 39 to 44, and is further east. There are three open air sidings, numbered 45 to 47, two of which were added around 1989. In 2002, 12 trains were normally stabled at the depot.

Operation

Prior to the Stanmore branch becoming part of the Jubilee line, the Bakerloo line had been operated by a mix of 1938 Stock and 1972 Mark II Stock. The 1972 Stock had been transferred to the line from late 1976 onwards, and the first train entered passenger service on 4 April 1977. When the split occurred, all of the 1972 Stock was used to operate the Jubilee line, and Stonebridge Park depot held a full complement of 1938 Stock. A temporary decrease in passenger numbers on the underground generally saw service reductions introduced from December 1982, and spare trains of 1959 Stock were transferred to the Bakerloo. The first train arrived at the depot on 5 December 1982, to allow crews to be trained, and the units entered service on 28 February 1983. By 3 October 1983, 15 trains had been transferred, and 14 trains of 1938 Stock had been withdrawn for scrapping. When delivery of 1983 Stock began, to re-equip the Jubilee line, 1972 Stock was moved to the Northern line, and displaced 1959 Stock was transferred to the Bakerloo. All 1938 Stock had left the depot and the line by 20 November 1985. From early 1987 onwards, the depot saw regular visits of 1972 Mark 1 Stock, which were transferred from the Northern line for overhaul. A second batch of 1983 Stock was ordered for the Jubilee line, allowing 1972 Mark II Stock to be transferred to the Bakerloo and Stonebridge Park depot, and this transfer was completed by March 1989. Unusually, the trains are turned to run on the Bakerloo, with the 'A' end facing south and the 'D' end facing north. This allows shunting within the depot to be carried out from a middle driving motor car of a four-car unit, rather than from the shunting cabinet on an uncoupling non-driving motor car of a three-car unit. The 33 trains of 1972 Mark II Stock were supplemented by a modified train of 1972 Mark I Stock in 1989, which was renumbered to follow the numbering sequence of those already on the Bakerloo. It is unclear where they were all stored, since Hardy in 1993 lists the 34 trains under stock allocation but only accounts for 28 under depot allocation, ten at Stonebridge Park depot, seven at Queen's Park depot, nine at London Road depot, and two on sidings at Elephant and Castle. A similar anomaly occurs in 2002, when he lists 36 trains but only 32 in the depot allocation. By this time, 12 trains were stabled at Stonebridge Park depot, seven at Queen's Park depot, ten at London Road, now downgraded to sidings, and three at Elephant and Castle.

References

Bibliography

* * * * * {{London Underground rolling stock Railway depots in London London Underground depots Transport in the London Borough of Brent