One of the best attractions in Dundee has got to be the Museum of Transport.
This amazing museum tells the story of Dundee’s transport heritage – what makes it one of the best is the detail and care the staff and volunteers take.
The museum has been operating on Market Mews since opening in 2014 and it has since went on to be ranked as the best attraction in the city on Tripadvisor.
But museum bosses want to go one step further, by moving from their current premises to the derelict Maryfield Tram Depot, which they aim to renovate and reuse – it is a wonderful idea.
To have a transport museum based in a disused tram depot just makes perfect sense.
Dundee Museum of Transport purchased the site in 2015 and now they are getting work done in the depot, with the aim of having the move completed and the new museum opened to the public by 2025.
New concept images were released by the team at Dundee Museum of Transport and they look absolutely fabulous.
I was delighted to be invited down to the Maryfield Tram Depot last week to see the building for myself by Dr Paul Jennings, the executive director of the museum.
I used to go past the depot in the car and I always wondered what it looked like inside – to finally see that come true was a real treat.
It was amazing to see the size and scale of the building, it stretches from the southern end of the Forfar Road to Stobsmuir Road and is divided into three sections.
Due to ongoing works, we were only allowed to walk in the front area, dubbed the “Victorian section”, the oldest part of the building.
Some of the ideas for the Victorian section look amazing, it will house the permanent collection and will also have walls painted in dark green, in homage to the style of the old Dundee Corporation Tramways colours.
The second and third sections were closed up, but I saw a sneak peek of the second section and there is a lot of potential to make this museum a hotspot for not just visitors, but for Dundonians too.
During my visit I learned the depot is in good hands of a team who are committed to preserving Dundee’s transport heritage. We are lucky to have the Dundee Museum of Transport in our city.
The Dundee Museum of Transport currently has 17,000 visitors a year on average, and with the move to Maryfield, it is hoped this will increase to 50,000 a year.
What also makes this future move to Maryfield great is it not being located at the city’s waterfront.
I believe it will encourage visitors to head out into the inner parts of the city and show the waterfront is only just one part of Dundee.
The redevelopment of the Maryfield Tram Depot will take a while, but it is an exciting journey, and I can’t wait to see this old tram depot be transformed into a centre to celebrate Dundee’s historic transport heritage for generations to come.
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