DB Cargo UK and Cemex have opened a ‘pop up’ rail depot in Warrington to serve the northwest construction market and reduce the number of lorries on the roads.

Above: The Warrington depot

The ‘pop-up’ depot was installed in weeks alongside the West Coast Mainline using a ready-made weighbridge and office.  The temporary site is expected to handle around 125,000 tonnes of aggregates each year.

It is used to receive aggregates transported from Dove Holes Quarry in the Derbyshire Peaks on two weekly rail services, with each train carrying approximately 1,540 tonnes of aggregates. Up to 150 HGVs would be needed to carry this by road.

DB Cargo UK is also responsible for unloading the aggregates at Warrington, where they are later transported to local concrete plants and construction sites by road.  

Mark Grimshaw-Smith, head of Cemex Rail and Sea, said: “A pop-up rail depot can be installed in weeks rather than months and gives the flexibility to move aggregates from quarries to areas where they are needed, especially in the short term. So with the right piece of land close to the rail network you can create a depot.

“Rail has considerable economic and environmental benefits compared to road transportation with significant CO₂ savings and on busy roads, a major time saving.  In 2015 we transported 2.3 million tonnes by rail equivalent to 80,000 truck movements.”