The Big Circle Line will have three electric depots of its own: the already existing Zamoskvoretskoye in the south of the city and two new ones, Nizhegorodskoye in the east and Aminevskoye in the west. Presently, the first segment of the Big Circle Line is served by the Solntsevo depot, opened in 2018 and one of the largest in Moscow. With the total area of 85,000 square meters, it can accommodate up to 40 trains, ten of which can be repaired simultaneously.
The Zamoskvoretskoye depot, which used to serve the Zamoskvoretskaya Line, is now being renovated. To connect it to the Big Circle Line, two auxiliary lines were built, one in late 2020 and the other in summer 2021. The construction is underway in tunnels now.
The Aminevskoye depot will be connected to the Big Circle Line by three auxiliary lines that will run both above ground and underground. The depot will be located in a former industrial zone; the site improvement is nearing completion, and the construction will begin shortly. The demolition of over 70 non-residential buildings and structures is almost completed, and the waste has been removed. Excavation works are already underway, and a temporary construction camp is being set up at the moment. Up to 1,800 people are estimated to live and work there at peak times.
The Nizhegorodskoye depot is the first one to accommodate a service company run by the manufacturer of the trains “Moscow-2020”.
Upon completion of these works, the actual construction will begin. The site is supposed to accommodate over 40 buildings and structures, including stabling depots, maintenance facilities, workshops, a train washing plant, an administrative and amenity building with a portico, a laundering and cleaning facility for work clothes as well as several other structures. The site area is 15.7 hectares, and the total area of the depot will amount to 236,000 square meters.
The Nizhegorodskoye depot will be constructed at the site of the former Vassily Voitovich Train Car Building and Repair Plant. The works are divided into three phases because of the sheer scale of the project and because of the need to first demolish multiple unused buildings. When the new depot is operational, it will house up to 30 trains to be repaired simultaneously, and provide jobs for 1,000 people. The Nizhegorodskoye depot will incorporate 52 buildings and structures fitted out with custom equipment for high-quality maintenance and repair of the trains operated by the Moscow Metro.
The Nizhegorodskoye depot is also to be the first one to accommodate a train manufacturer’s own service company. It will provide maintenance service on the high-end trains “Moscow-2020”.
Remote fault diagnostic techniques will be used in the new depots.
The new electric depots were scheduled to be put into operation at the same time with the launch of the Big Circle Line. It was emphasized that due to the accelerated pace of the construction of the Big Circle Line, the construction of the new depots should also be sped up accordingly. They will be finished ahead of time.
From the outside, an electric depot looks like a hangar. But the exterior is only a small part; the essential part is the technologies involved, the utilities that facilitate quick maintenance of trains.
In every depot, there is special equipment for the machining of wheels. The tunnels are winding and have ups and downs, so with time, wheels get worn down. In a depot, wheels are regularly checked and either sent for machining or replaced. The form of a wheel set is complex; it has up to 15 facets. They are necessary for the train to stay on track.
The new depos are fitted out with the most up-to-date wheel machining equipment. Previously, it was possible to machine a wheel set only after it was detached from the train. The new equipment is of a pass-through type; the wheels get machined while the train moves on a special track.
In the new depots, remote fault diagnostic techniques are used. It means that the maintenance crew can have a plan of action even before a train arrives at the depot. A set of sensors is installed at the exit of the depot tunnel, and as a train goes through it, the sensors automatically record its basic parameters.
23 electric train depots will serve the trains of the Moscow Metro by the end of 2023.
The efficacy of such check-ups depends on the sensors’ diagnostic capability. The collected data is catalogued in the electronic journal of the respective train. If any defect is registered, the depot is immediately informed, and the maintenance crew gets ready for repairs. Modern trains are equipped with multiple sensors that constantly check all the systems and alarm the engine driver if there is any trouble. The driver passes the information on to the depot.
The new depots will provide excellent conditions for the maintenance of trains as well as possibilities of respite for train crews. That is an essential part of any institution. People who do such demanding jobs as those of metro workers must have opportunities to relax in a lounge area or recharge their energies at a gym or in a sports pitch.
From “The Big Circle Line of the Moscow Metro”. Newsletter of the Moscow Construction Complex