Freightliner Update

86604 86639 4L60 19:46 Garston FLT - Crewe Basford Hall seen at Halebank on 02/06/2020.

The last few months have been the strangest time in many of our lives, with the world consumed in a pandemic. COVID-19, or Corona Virus as it is more commonly referred to, has affected all of our daily lives. The railways are no exception with passenger operators running with reduced timetables, some operators such as Grand Central by Arriva decided to suspend all services indefinitely. During the lock down, trains would continue to run to provide key workers an opportunity to be able to get to and from their places of work.

Whilst waiting at Halebank, the familiar roar of the GE PowerHaul P616 engine disturbed the peace as 70005 ran light from Garston FLT - Ditton FLT.  This was under headcode 0F45 and was to position the loco to work the 4K45 12:52 Ditton FLT - Crewe Basford Hall service. Seen here at Halebank, the loco is heading for a runaround at Garston Yard 21/03/2020.

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Rail freight has continued also and in many ways has kept the country going with vital flows of foodstuffs, drinks and biomass to name just a few. One area that is only now really starting to feel the impact of COVID-19 is the inter modal container market. Most of the things we buy and use every day are made in China. With this virus seemingly starting in Wuhan, the Chinese went in to an early lockdown and with it the halting of industry. Many many deep sea container ships leave Chinese ports every day, carrying goods all over the world. In the case of the UK, a journey from China may take 6-7 weeks, so the last ships (in theory) to leave prior to China's shut down have arrived. 

                                      

Operators such as DB Cargo UK, Freightliner and GBRf are all big players in the inter modal market with services running all over the UK. Freightliner is the largest in this market, being originally a business built around the transport of containers all over the country. They have diversified in to other areas now with their Heavy Haul side of the business shifting anything from aggregates to household waste. But the containers are still very much the beating heart of the business. Operations are centred on the ports at Felixstowe and Southampton and serve inland terminals such as Coatbridge (Glasgow), Ditton (Widnes), Garston (Liverpool), Lawley St (Birmingham), Leeds, Trafford Park (Manchester), Teesdock (Middlesborough) and Wentloog (Newport)  - this list is not exhaustive.

Also during the global pandemic, Abellio Greater Anglia, have replaced their loco hauled Intercity services between Liverpool St and Norwich with modern units by Bombardier and Stadler. This has seen the delayed transfer of 13 Class 90's (90003-90015) to Freightliner. With reduced traffic levels at the moment and less pressure on the fleet, these 13 as well as the entire Class 70 fleet (19 locos) and several 66's have been placed in to temporary store until traffic levels pick up again. The 90's will all receive modifications and a repaint in to G+W orange before they enter traffic with 90014 expected to be the first. 90014 received a heavy exam at Crewe TMD and was shipped over to Basford Hall VMF where work has continued. The other 12 currently sit in the depths of Basford Hall yard awaiting the call. 

86637 86632 4M45 Felixstowe North FLT - Garston FLT, Halebank 17/03/2020. 

A jammy patch of light this morning as 90048 and 90016 pass through Red Bank under a moody sky. The service in question was the 4S50 06:03 Crewe Basford Hall - Coatbridge FLT liner. 05/06/2020.

The other loco's in the Fleet, the ever present Class 86's, continue to play an important role with the company. The fleet are largely concentrated on workings south of Crewe working various services to an from Ipswich but do retain at least one booked turn on weekdays to/from Coatbridge.

The fleet has remained static for the last few years at 16 operational locomotives. Some have spent periods out of use such as 86627 and 86632 which had Transformer and Wheel set attention before returning to active use, but were never formally stored. Since the start of the Corona Virus pandemic several examples have been stored. First to go was 86610 which requires new wheels, thankfully the loco is being kept 'warm' at Crewe and hopefully should be returned to traffic in due course. 86614 was then the next to be stood down. That in the past week has been reinstated and is currently back in traffic. At the expense of this reinstatement was 86627 which has been stood down at Basford Hall. Time will tell whether this one comes back, with Freightliner describing rumours of the 86's demise as 'Fake news'. I believe a core fleet will be retained with a couple of locos probably becoming spares donors to keep them going.

This afternoon 86605 has been moved to store but this should be a temporary stint as the loco is receiving attention at Crewe.

86608 86638 4L60 19:46 Garston FLT - Felixstowe North FLT at Hartford on 14/05/2020.

90043 90016 4S59 20:59 Crewe Basford Hall - Coatbridge FLT at Hartford 04/03/2020

90016 was in the news in late May, when it failed near Mossend whilst paired with 90047 on an evening departure from Coatbridge. The train was shunted back in to Mossend yard where the errant 90016, which reportedly had caught fire and was scorched, was removed before 90047 continued south solo. The reports of 90016's demise where premature and somewhat exaggerated as, after being transferred back to Crewe the next day, was back in service by the end of the week once again paired up with 90047 on Anglo-Scottish flows.

At the time of writing 90044, the only electric to carry the G+W Orange+Black scheme, is out of traffic pending the arrival of parts at Crewe.

90044 90046 4M11 Hartford 04/03/2020

90047 90045 4M11 18:03 Coatbridge FLT - Crewe Basford Hall, Acton Bridge 14/05/2020.

08530 Trafford Park FLT 18/01/2020.

66517 66522 4K83 12:13 Garston FLT - Crewe Basford Hall, Halebank 30/05/2020

08691 - Basford Hall's pilot

Crewe Basford Hall welcomed the return of a Gronk back in August when 08691 'Terri' arrived from the Port of Felixstowe. The loco was last at Basford Hall circa 2002 when it wore a plain grey livery.

The loco will mark 60 years since delivery at the end of this month having started life back in October 1959 as D3858, as a product of Horwich works. The loco was delivered to Walton, Liverpool and would remain in Liverpool for the first decade of it's career with spells at Edge Hill, Speke and Allerton. Staying in the North West the loco was allocated to Wigan Springs Branch in 1970, had a brief return to Allerton a year later, before once again becoming a Springs Branch engine until being sent to store in 1984. A call to Swindon followed for overhaul and upon release in late 1984 headed to York.

It's probably best remembered for being the Sheffield Station pilot whilst being allocated to Tinsley.
Like most of Tinsley's fleet at the time the locomotive received an unofficial name as well as livery embellishments. In this case the name 'Escafeld' was painted on in 1987 and a light grey roof applied to it's BR Blue livery. The loco later received BR Green with grey roof and cast BR Arrows.

Relocation from Tinsley came in 1994 with the loco once again allocated to Allerton. Time was spent in the Crewe area but by 1997 it was laid up at Crewe Diesel. Repairs followed and the now nearly 40 year old Gronk began it's Freightliner career with a spell at Trafford Park FLT in 1998.

A full overhaul came in 2003 at Doncaster works with the loco outshopped in Freightliner Green/Yellow which it carries to this day. During it's FL career it has served at Felixstowe FLT, Tilbury FLT, Trafford Park FLT and Southampton Maritime FLT and once again Crewe Basford Hall.
The name 'Terri' is inspired by an Ipswich girl who at 6 years of age received significant burns in a house fire. Terri named the locomotive herself at the Port of Felixstowe in 2003.

It is believed that it will be joined shortly by another Class 08 in the form of 08891 currently being repaired at Nemesis Burton Rail. The one time Garston FLT pilot having not worked for FL for over a decade after being laid up at Southampton in 2008. It was removed to the LH Group, Barton-under-Needwood the same year for repairs but has ended up donating a lot of parts to other members of the fleet. Removal to Burton came in 2017 along with fellow spares donor 08575.

Autumn of the Class 86

86608 86607 4M83 1033 Coatbridge F.L.T. to Crewe Bas Hall S.S.M taken at Red Bank, Newton-le-Willows 17/08/2019

Freightliner's Class 86 fleet have served the company well with well over 50 years service. With the introduction of large fleets of new trains within the UK over the past few years, the merry go round redeployment of replaced trains mean the 86's time appears to be running out.

From December, Abellio Greater Anglia will start the withdrawal of their Class 90 and Mark 3 coach fleet with the introduction of their new Stadler Class 745 FLIRT units on the Intercity route between Norwich and London Liverpool Street. The 15 Class 90's, who are currently owned by Porterbrook, already have new homes with 2 destined for Locomotive Services Ltd (LSL) at Crewe and the remaining 13 to Freightliner Intermodal. This should allow for the withdrawal of the 86's from FL use. The irony here being that once released from West Coast duties in the early 2000's, the 90's also replaced 86's on these Anglia duties.

Freightliner were up until earlier this year, last year considering an overhaul scheme for the 86's which would have seen a number be retained for a further 20 years service. It is believed that the company is now considering withdrawal instead. From November, Freightliner take over the Mendip Stone contract from DB and will inherit the Class 59/0's and 59/1's. The Class 66/6's which are currently focussed around the Tunstead traffic are believed to be headed to the Mendips with their duties being taken over from some reinstated Class 70 locomotives. Whether enough loco's will be in position to allow for a complete 86 withdrawal remains to be seen but here's hoping not.

86608 86637 4K64 11:46 Garston FLT - Crewe Basford Hall taken at Acton Bridge 22/06/2018.

It is believed that from around October the Anglo-Scottish intermodal trains, long in the hands of pairs of 86's, will be taken over by pairs of Class 90's. Freightliner currently have 11 90's on the books, 10 of which are serviceable but 3 remain on hire to GBRf for Caledonian Sleeper duties. This hire contract should have ended by now but due to delays to the new CAF MK5 stock remain in use. This should however be resolved in the coming weeks. A refresh and training programme has been underway with Mossend based drivers on the type and once the combination of trained staff and loco availability is where it should be, the 86's should give way on these north of Crewe workings.

86627 86609 4M42 2152 Felixstowe North FLT to Garston FLT service at Acton Bridge 27/06/2019.

Other than the Anglo-Scotland workings, Class 86's are currently the booked traction for the following workings:

4L41 0603 Crewe Basford Hall - Felixstowe FLT (as far as Ipswich)
4M42 2152 Felixstowe FLT - Garston FLT (from Ipswich)
0K64 1146 Garston FLT - Crewe Basford Hall (light engines)

4L91 0210 Trafford Park FLT - Felixstowe (as far as Ipswich)
4M87 1113 Felixstowe FLT - Trafford Park (from Ipswich)

 Get them while you 'Can'!!!

86612 86638 4K83 12:13 Garston FLT - Crewe Basford Hall service taken at Acton Bridge 21/09/2019

86622 86638 4K64 11:46 Garston FLT - Crewe Basford Hall service taken at Halewood 05/05/2016

86628 86639 0K64 11:46 Garston FLT - Crewe Basford Hall light engine movement taken at Halebank 20/09/2019

In Focus: 4L92 Ditton to Felixstowe

Fastly approaching their 50th birthday, Class 86 locomotives can still be found racing up and down the West Coast mainline. These electrics were introduced by British Rail in the 1960's following the various trials of Class 81-85 and become the standard electric locomotive. Reliable and versatile, they have adapted to every task put to them over the years. Today though, Freightliner Intermodal are the only operator of the Class on front line duties (in the UK at least). Several pairs of the locomotives are concentrated on the Coatbridge FLT in Glasgow to Crewe Basford Hall container services. There is though, one Northbound and one Southound service daily that operates on the GEML. Service 4M42 is the 22:08 Felixstowe North FLT to Garston FLT, South Liverpool. The other service, 4L92 is the 14:03 Ditton O'Connor/Stobart FLT to Felixstowe North FLT. The electrics only operate
to/from Ipswich where they are changed to/from diesel locomotives. The latter service will be the focus of a case study here, highlighting the different operational stages to get this train going.

As mentioned above, this is booked for Class 86 haulage. As of late, single Class 90's have been appearing on the service more frequently, as well as the occasional Class 66 or 70. I'm unsure exactly as to why there was a change from 86's for a short period, I assume it was down to poor availability of the Class for a period. Indeed this week, Freightliner are suffering poor availability of their Class 90 fleet. The fleet is 10 strong, and indeed as I type this, 50% of the fleet are out of service for exams/repairs.

My day starts at Garston FLT early on the morning of Monday 05/01/2015, waiting for the 4F64 service from Crewe Basford Hall. On a Monday, this service normally has a convoy of locomotives to get the weeks services started. It's a good way of getting locomotives shifted from A to B without using too many paths. Indeed this morning, the train is led by 90016, with 86632 and 86613 tucked inside as well as the train of containers. Garston has not had a dedicated Class 08/09 shunter for a number of years now, so the Class 90 is detached from the 86's and runs round the train, to shunt it in from the back. Before the 90 shunts, the 86's are detached, powered up and run in to the holding siding next to the FLT where they will remain for the morning. Stage 1 complete, getting the locomotives to Garston. On a Tuesday to Friday though, the locomotives arrive at Garston on the 4M42 return service from Felixstowe (from Ipswich) rather than arriving in convoy from Crewe. Barring failures or the need for exams, the same pair of locos normally stay on the service for the week.

Now, service 4L92 is a service that runs from Ditton, so this requires the locos to make the short trip from Garston FLT to Ditton Reception sidings. For this, the locos run light under headcode 0F72 leaving at around 13:14. With the trip only being around 7 miles, it is timetabled to take just 14 minutes.

Ditton FLT is not electrified, so the Electrics only run as far as Ditton Reception sidings. Similar to Garston, Ditton uses mainline diesels to do the shunting in the terminal and this is done by whatever Class 66 or 70 locomotive is on hand. With the 86's sitting in the sidings, the train is brought out today by 66504. One of only two UK Class 66's currently in Freightliner 'Powerhaul' livery, 66504 was the first recipient of the scheme. Originally released with an all silver buffer beam, the loco didn't look quite right.  66416 was painted in to the scheme in 2014 and had its buffer beam painted all black which sat better on the loco. 66504 was subsequently modified to this style when its next exam fell. I've been waiting to get 66504 in its modified scheme for some time, I had seen it on 2 previous occasions with its silver buffer beam.

To my delight, yesterday morning 504 was on the 4M45 Ipswich Yard to Ditton FLT arriving at around 12:00. The loco comes off the mainline at Ditton East Junction in to the Reception sidings and continues to the headshunt allowing the whole length of the train to fit in to the sidings. Then, the loco reverses back shunting its train in to the terminal. This was good news as well because it meant the likelihood was that this loco was then going to be the loco that brought 4L92 out. Sure enough, 66504 did perform the honours. I positioned myself at the headshunt, on some wasteland adjacent to it. Here the fence sits quite close to the line and despite having some overgrown weeds, can provide you with good picture opportunities up close to the locos. When the Shed arrived at the headshunt, the shunter uncouples it from the train and the driver swaps cabs. This is obviously because when the train leaves behind the 86's, the 'Super Shunter' then runs back in to the terminal. Later on, it will either run light to Crewe (if due maintenance) or form a south bound service, normally to Felixstowe.

As for the 90, 90016 returned to Crewe on the 4K64 service at midday, a solid 90 turn (when availability allows anyway)