Slade Green Depot
View of Slade Green Depot, from the platform end of Slade Green railway station. The curve to the right is the line to Central London via Bexleyheath, and straight ahead is the main line to Dartford
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| Location | |
|---|---|
| Location | Slade Green, London, England |
| Coordinates | 51°27′51″N 0°11′38″E / 51.4642°N 0.1938°ECoordinates: 51°27′51″N 0°11′38″E / 51.4642°N 0.1938°E |
| OS grid | TQ524762 |
| Characteristics | |
| Depot code(s) | SG (1973-) |
| Type | EMU, Departmental |
| History | |
| Opened | 1899 |
| Original | South Eastern and Chatham Railway |
| Pre-grouping | South Eastern and Chatham Railway |
| Post-grouping | Southern Railway |
| BR region | Southern Region |
| Former depot code(s) | SLGN |
Slade Green Depot is a major railway depot in Slade Green, South East London. The depot is situated south of Slade Green railway station.
The late-Victorian era hamlet of Slade Green consisted of two small farming communities until the South Eastern Railway's (SER) development of the North Kent Line from Strood and Dartford to London Bridge.
After considering enlarging the existing depot at Bricklayers' Arms, it was concluded that the growth in freight traffic necessitated a new depot. Land was purchased on Crayford marshes, with plans for a brick-built 10-road shed of 600 feet (180 m) in length, with two of these feeding a repair shed located in the north eastern corner. With a budget of £55,000, construction started in April 1898, with an allowance for building 145 railway workers houses. On 1 May 1895 a triangular junction was opened with the Bexleyheath line.
The shed, initially called Whitehall, Erith was completed on 27 October 1899, under the South Eastern & Chatham Railway (SE&CR). Better equipped than major depots at Stewarts Lane or Ashford, the main building was fed by two 50 feet (15 m) turntables, with a 150,000 imperial gallons (680,000 l; 180,000 US gal) water tank feeding out via a dedicated water softener. The repair shed was equipped with two 5-tonne travelling cranes, allowing full reconstruction of all allocated engines. By the time the first locomotives arrived in November 1899, an external contractor had constructed the 158 houses of the new railway village. The total cost of the project was £74,500, and in scale it was only second to Stewarts Lane, able to service 100 steam locomotives. But its opening allowed closure of the smaller sheds at Woolwich Arsenal and Deptford.
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