Transport for London has secured funding from the Government to help its tram depot in Croydon become cleaner, greener, and cheaper to run.

The funding is to help fund the decarbonisation of the depot in Therapia Lane in Croydon. In doing so it will become the first of a number of depots on the Transport for London network to become low-carbon.

Funding for the project is coming from the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme, which is intended to provide grants for heat decarbonisation and energy efficiency measures for public sector bodies in England.

A grant of £592,000 will be delivered by Salix Finance and will help part-fund several improvements at the depot. The rest of the funding will come from Transport for London’s own decarbonisation investment which is part of its current Business Plan. Planning is now underway with a scheduled completion date of 2025 for the improvements at the depot.

Included in the project is upgrading heating systems by replacing ageing and inefficient gas boilers with a mixture of efficient heat pumps and infrared panel heaters. Although the upgraded heating system will require additional electricity consumption, will be offset by installing solar panels on 1,800m2 of south-facing roof space, and other energy efficiency measures such as improved insulation and LED lighting.

The upgrades form part of TfL’s work to reduce the impacts of climate change and to meet the Mayor’s goal of a net-zero London by 2030. They will also remove dependence on expensive and less environmentally friendly fossil fuels, and provide significant savings in running costs.

Transport for London is one of the largest consumers of electricity in the UK and has recently begun tendering for a Power Purchase Agreement as a first step towards the Mayor of London’s goal of a net-zero London by 2030. TfL is looking to procure between 80 and 200 GWh per year to provide up to 10 per cent of its electricity from renewable sources. This is expected to be the largest public sector agreement in the UK.

Mark Davis, Transport for London’s General Manager for London Trams, said: “The planned improvements at the Therapia Lane depot are key to demonstrate that removal of fossil fuels from large, hard-to-decarbonise depots is feasible.
Once this work is complete, the depot will not only be cleaner and greener it will be better shielded from more costly fossil fuels to help provide significant cost savings.”

Chiara Lorenzetti, Salix Assistant Director, said: “We are looking forward to working on the London Trams project to help deliver this innovative decarbonisation project.

“It is very exciting as this London Trams depot will be the first of a number of low-carbon depots on the Transport for London network.

“The funding from the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero will make a positive impact to a greener future for the network.”