The Introduction of the EWS Class 66

"The prototype bogie did not come with the same durability warranty as the production version. For this reason, it was always planned to update the prototype bogies to the ‘passed’ version at an early stage."

Still almost brand new in summer 2000, No. 66220 scales the Lickey Incline with a long rake of loaded coal hoppers, and some distant rear-end assistance from triple-grey 60068.

The arrival of the EWS (history of EWS here) Class 66 locomotives is widely remembered by the UK motive power enthusiast as a launching pad for the biggest cull in the history of British-built diesel freight traction. But for those more focused on the prosperity of the railway, the Class 66’s grand entrance was a bravura performance. From speed of delivery, through whirlwind, pre-approved acceptance, to the unprecedented streamlining of inventory and maintenance, the birth and roll-out of the Class 66 was a masterclass in efficiency.

The £350,000,000 order for 250 brand new freight locomotives was placed almost immediately after the EWS brand came into being in spring 1996. Idealistically, EWS would have bought secondhand to reduce costs, but it’s not an ideal world, and there was no high-quantity secondhand market for a GB-compatible loco with the operational improvements EWS required. So they approached General Motors to talk about an upgrade on the GB-proven Class 59/2, with a modernised engine, ‘self-steering’ bogies, and highly advanced computer control.

Sandite Syphons: Bescot's WKMS Class 37 Pool of 1999

"Given the strength of the task force, any leaves that had fallen vaguely into the vicinity of a West Midlands railway line must by this time have been cowering in fear."

Battleworn and doomed 37384 - one of the first two operational locos to join the '99 WKMS pool - gunks the down road of the Lickey Incline at the old Bromsgrove station, on 6th October 1999.

For the fan of first generation diesels, 1999 brought an almighty shock to the system. That year, vintage EWS freight locos were being taken out of traffic so quickly that if you spent a day shooting Kodachrome at Bescot, you could expect a couple of the locos you photographed to have left the fleet by the time your slides came back from processing. It really was that bad.

But the autumn brought glad tidings. A need to combat the slippery effects of leaf fall meant that trackwork in key locations would need to be doused in Sandite - the liquid-form adhesion aid. In some areas, Sandite treatment had become a bigger issue in the latter 1990s, as lineside vegetation had been allowed to pervade more than it had in the past. And in the final year before the Railtrack MPVs were due to take over, Sandite application was still a routine Class 37 duty. Hence, joyous murmurs abounded as EWS prepared to dig out some absolute bangers from their stocks of inactive 'Syphons', and restore them to life...

Info-Pictorial: EWS Traction in the Midlands

"A combination of two detail traits could identify main line locos repainted in EWS livery prior to autumn 1996..."

In the post British Rail privatised era, it was, without any doubt at all, the train operator with the highest enthusiast appeal. Over the course of its life, EWS employed locos from classes 08, 09, 20, 31, 33, 37, 47, 56, 58, 59, 60, 66, 67, 73, 86, 87, 90 and 92. Almost all in considerable number. And early on, the range of surviving liveries was vast, extending back through all the BR sectors you could think of, to the earliest Railfreight grey, large logo, and standard Rail Blue.

In this post I’m looking back at the earlier period of EWS, through the eyes of a Midland railway enthusiast…