AN ARCHITECTURE firm from the Bradford district has played its part in the Commonwealth Games after designing the £20 million bus depot in host city Glasgow.

Janus Architecture, Bradford Road, Idle, has designed the facility on the ten acre site at Gushetfields on the south side of Glasgow.

It is the biggest bus depot in the UK and will have space for up to 450 buses and more than 1,200 employees.

The depot has opened up in time for the Commonwealth Games in the city and will be used to ferry both athletes and spectators to the event's various stadiums.

The site will be fully operational in November this year.

It is the latest project tie-in for Janus Architecture, which started in 2000 and now has 11 employees, with bus company First Group. As part of the deal, Janus has designed numerous depots for the firm across the UK.

The company started on the Glasgow bus depot in 2010 and it has already moved onto its next major project, a First Group bus depot in Colchester.

The Glasgow building includes new bus washes and refuelling facilities, brand new training facilities.

It will also be a green site featuring rainwater harvesting so roof water can be used in the bus wash, which is expected to save up to 2.2 million litres of water per year, enough to fill 22 double decker buses.

Photovoltaic solar panels will also be used on the roof of the depot which will produce enough electricity to power around 40 houses per year.

Robert Rhodes, Janus Architecture director, spoke of his pride after the facility was open in time for the Games.

He said: "It makes me feel proud to see the depot open. It's also a relief.

"The depot is the largest one First have ever done.

"There will be 450 buses running for the Commonwealth Games.

"We started on the project in 2010. We were involved from day one, doing the initial designs. We've worked on it for the duration.

"It's good to see all of the buses running. We have just been finishing off the facility. Employees will be relocating into there in the next couple of months.

"I was in Glasgow just before the Games started, it was good to see the buses running around there.

"First Group have been a client for us for many years. We have done various buildings with them over the years.

"We have worked on bus depots throughout the UK including Southampton, Swansea and Aberdeen.

"We are currently doing well."

Janus Architecture have also completed projects at Thackley Primary School, Town Lane, Bradford and Southmere School, Ewart Street, Great Horton. They have also worked on the Merrion Centre in Leeds and Sheffield Data Centre.