NEWS UPDATE
COLAS RAIL
THE operational Colas-owned Class 37 fleet was back up to six locomotives in September, with the return of
No. 37254 after nine months waylaid undergoing repairs. It was recorded on the 19th ‘top and tailing’ a 1Q62 19.07 Gascoigne Wood-Scarborough PLPR test train with No. 37421. This leaves just No. 37057 stopped on Nottingham Eastcroft depot, the former HNRC green machine being out of action since October last year. The Colas
Type 3 fleet has also been boosted by the addition of HNRC locos Nos. 37610 and 37612, which are back on hire for test train work. The pair debuted together on a 1Q18 18.44 Crewe CS circular diagram via most of the North West! Also back in service is No. 70804, which completed its return to active duty at Rugby after almost exactly three years out of use.
DB CARGO
TAKING place some weeks later than last year’s RHTT season shake-up, some 19 Class 66s have now been reallocated from their respective pools to WBRT for autumn ‘leafbusting’ duties, four more than in 2021. At least two of these additional locomotives appear to be for the Scottish RHTT diagram based at Slateford, which in previous years has been operated by Class 67s, but with traction still moving into place the full breakdown is not yet clear. The 19 are as follows:
Nos. 66011, 66092, 66111, 66117, 66121, 66139, 66154, 66174, 66187 (ex-WBAE), Nos. 66067, 66069, 66084, 66105, 66129, 66130, 66186 (exWBAR), Nos. 66100, 66106 (ex-WBBE) and No. 66179 (ex-WBAI).
Separately, No. 60019 has joined Nos. 60039, 60054, 60063, 60091 and 60100 in the WQAA storage pool. The last three have all been waylaid at Toton since the same time last year and gives the operator just 16 operational Class 60s. Finally, another Class 66 has seen red, No. 66056 emerging from the paintshop in DBC’s corporate image.
FREIGHTLINER
IN a very welcome move, the Pride of
Ferrybridge name – originally chosen by National Power staff – is again carried by a Class 59/2. Unveiled in June
1997 and fitted to the last member of the fleet to be delivered, No.
59206, the nameplates were removed in December 2008 ahead of its DB Schenker repaint and renaming as John F Yeoman Rail Pioneer. The ’plates – in the original style – were refitted to
No. 59202 at Leeds Midland Road in the third week of September. This was originally named Vale of White Horse.
In repainting news, No. 66509 is now in G&W orange courtesy of a somewhat extended stay at Wolverton Works, departing on September 13. It was replaced at the Buckinghamshire site by No. 90016.