DB Cargo UK Class 60 End Game?

DB Cargo UK has announced that it intends to withdraw all of its remaining operational Class 60s. In this video I will look back at the history of the class.

The Class 60 is a type 5 heavy haul diesel freight locomotive that was contsructed between 1988 and 1993.

Following on from a competitive bidding process on the 17 May 1988 an order for 100 locomotives was placed with Brush Traction by the Secretary of State for Transport at a cost of around £124 million.

Brush decided to subcontract much of the component manufacturing work, while performing final assembly of each locomotive at its erecting shops at Loughborough.

The bodyshell of the Class 60, which was shared with the Class 92 electric locomotives, was fabricated by Procor of Wakefield.

The engines used were a higher-powered development of the Mirrlees engine, which had been previously fitted to the Class 37/9s.

All of the 60s were out shopped in the triple grey Trainload Freight livery of the late British Rail era. The class were variously allocated to the petroleum, coal, metals and construction freight sectors.

In preparation for the privatisation of British Rail the trainload business was split into regionally based shadow franchises.

The locomotives were split between three of these franchises with Mainline assigned 52 of the type, while Loadhaul and Transrail received 31 and 17 Class 60s respectively.

These franchises only existed for a short period before being purchased by the English Welsh & Scottish (EWS) freight company, so transferring all members of the Class to a single private sector operator.

EWS was rebranded as DB Cargo UK in 2007 after it was purchased by the state-owned national railway company of Germany, Deutsche Bahn.

The following compilation looks back at the EWS/DB Class 60s in operation over the past decade.

60096 6B33 Theale - Robeston at Cholsey 8/10/2009

60045 6M65 Didcot Yard - Carlisle MOD at Cholsey 8/10/2009

60013 6H50 Willesden - Tunstead at Dudswell 17/11/2009

60091 6E38 Colnbrook - Lindsey at Irchester 4/10/2010

60011 6F93 St Pancras - Ketton at Luton Hoo 5/9/2011

60074 6V92 Corby - Margam at Rearsby 19/3/2012

60071 6E38 Colnbrook - Lindsey at Ayres End 20/3/2012

60091 6E38 Colnbrook - Lindsey at Soulbury 30/6/2012

60049 6V28 Dagenham - Acton Yard at Ripple Lane 17/7/2012

60099 6L35 Didcot Yard - Dagenham Dock at Ripple Lane 12/3/2013

60091 6E48 Didcot Power Station - Lindsey at Kings Sutton 4/3/2013

60010 6B33 Theale - Robeston at South Stoke 16/3/2013

60054 6E38 Colnbrook - Lindsey at East Hyde 5/3/2013

60017 5Z61 Wembley - Eastleigh ECS at Chertsey 21/5/2013

60054+37605+37611 1Z37 Eastleigh - Wymondham Abbey at Ely Dock Junction 10/8/2013

60040 6F93 St Pancras - Ketton at Bromham 17/2/2014

60092 6E38 Colnbrook - Lindsey at Harrowden Junction 14/4/2014

60063 6B33 Theale - Margam (diverted via the Berks and Hants) at Crofton 16/5/2015

60054 6B33 Theale - Robeston at Cholsey 9/2/2018

60017 6Z39 Chaddesdon - Wembley at East Hyde 2/3/2020

60017 6M57 Lindsey - Kingsbury at North Stafford Junction19/5/2022

60044 6E54 Kingsbury - Humber at North Stafford Junction19/5/2022

60040 6B33 Theale - Robeston at Hungerford Common 16/6/2022

60044 6E02 Toton - Boston Docks at Hubberts Bridge 12/8/2022