Class 60's Scrapline at Toton

[yummy125]

What a waste of money, why can't they be repaired and get used on other passenger or freight services, instead of awful 159's on the Waterloo - Exeter line why not use double header 60's.

The same goes for the 90's & 92's at Crewe, totally horrified to see them parked up catching rust (why leave the doors open or does this help speed up the rusting process).

Lotto win will send 60 081 back to it's birthplace to get fully mainlined again for a spot of Railtour & hire.

Bring on the rant.

 

[sprinterguy]

What a waste of money, why can't they be repaired and get used on other passenger or freight services

There isn't enough freight traffic at the moment to warrant a large fleet of operational 60s, that's why they're stored. When Freightliner are storing 66s and DB Schenker have enough spare that they can afford to send quite a few abroad (now returning) it shows that railfreigh levels in the UK can't support that many freight locos.

You couldn't use 60s on passenger services because there isn't enough spare coaching stock, they are much slower than the trains they would replace, both in acceleration and max speed, they have no train supply, are fuel guzzlers and would cost a fortune in leasing costs and track access charges.

I do agree though that having so many excellent locos less than twenty years old laid up is criminal.

 

[Respite]

No good for passenger use mate, No ETH & slow as a slug getting away. But I totally agree, what a waste. Typical of todays railway though. It saddens me a lot as I was a signalman when they were doing trials with them in my area when they were brand new. I always prefered the 56's (as they were so much easier to get a margin for with there good turn of speed), but 60's were dependable & if there was one at the head of the MGR you knew it would make it.
Still see quite a few on the Kingsbury tanks as I think sheds are not up to the task at all. Knowing DB though they would probably rather just lose the traffic flow to road rather than keep those remaining 60's going.. & we all thought EWS were bad enough... :cry:

 

[sprinterguy]

Lotto win will send 60 081 back to it's birthplace to get fully mainlined again for a spot of Railtour & hire.

That'll be a big lotto win then: 60081 has to be one of the most fubared of all the 60s. That'd be making the classic perservationists mistake of preserving a loco simply because it is the buyers' "favourite", with no thought given to how practical a restoration would be.

 

[46100ROYALSCOT]

What a waste of money, why can't they be repaired and get used on other passenger or freight services, instead of awful 159's on the Waterloo - Exeter line why not use double header 60's.

The same goes for the 90's & 92's at Crewe, totally horrified to see them parked up catching rust (why leave the doors open or does this help speed up the rusting process).

Lotto win will send 60 081 back to it's birthplace to get fully mainlined again for a spot of Railtour & hire.

Bring on the rant.

May i ask where was the photo taken from, its been a while since i went to view Toton and no way could i get a shot as good as yours.
:cry:

 

[Sherlock37]

It is off the main WNXX site.

 

[ainsworth74]

instead of awful 159's on the Waterloo - Exeter line why not use double header 60's

Well it would seriously reduce the capacity for one, there would only be 5 seats for passengers (assuming 2 in each cab with one for the driver). The lack of a corridor connection between the locos could also be an issue when it comes to revenue protection. I suppose you could have people standing next to the engines but without complimentary ear defenders H&S might get in the way.

On the whole I think sticking with 159s is probably the way to go.

 

[starrymarkb]

What is a class 60's mpc? Is it higher or lower then the 159's (which have multiple Golden Spanners)

Plus a 159 can do 90mph - while a 60 can do all of 60mph, that is really going to improve journeys on the route :roll:

And why double head? do you need that much power for 3, 6 or 9 coaches?

 

[Oswyntail]

It is off the main WNXX site.

Sorry, but as I am not really that familiar with the site today, I still don't know. Presumably the picture is from an overbridge - what road?
Thanks

 

[bangor-toad]

Sorry, but as I am not really that familiar with the site today, I still don't know. Presumably the picture is from an overbridge - what road?
Thanks

Hi there,
It looks as if the photo was taken from the A52 bridge over the throat of the yard.
The A52 is the main (dual carriageway) between Nottingham and Derby. It's a bit busy but there are frequently photters clambering over the bridge whenever I drive by...

Jason

 

[33056]

........... are fuel guzzlers

Surprisingly they are quite fuel efficient, certainly far more so than any of the other older stuff. Not sure about how they compare with 66s as I have never been involved with both types at the same time to be able to make a comparison.

TBH, I have never really rated class 60s, they have had a lot of problems and caused me a fair amount of grief at times (from an operating perspective), though I will admit that it would help their cause if the current owners took a little more care of them.

 

[KingboyD]

That'll be a big lotto win then: 60081 has to be one of the most fubared of all the 60s. That'd be making the classic perservationists mistake of preserving a loco simply because it is the buyers' "favourite", with no thought given to how practical a restoration would be.

Yep would be easier to buy another 60 and paint it green

 

[D6975]

EWS have recently announced that the plan to overhaul a small fleet of 60s is back on...
Originally it was going to be about 20 IIRC.

 

[GearJammer]

totally horrified to see them parked up catching rust (why leave the doors open or does this help speed up the rusting process).

Totally aggree, it would'nt cost EWS/DB Schenker the earth just to buy some cheap board and board up the windows and grills and exhaust ports to keep the worst of the weather out, ....... even sheet over the whole loco, i mean what happened to all them blue covers that the 66's were covered in when the were delivered? They would be ideal!
I accept that we have to many freight locos for the work available at the moment but to see them just rotting away like that is just wrong!

 

[WL113]

Such a shame to see this. The Class 60, although not without it's problems, is an excellent, powerful freight locomotive. Surely they should be better protected than just shoved in a siding and left open. These are relatively new locos that were very well engineered in most respects.

Yes the rail freight situation is dire at the moment, but hopefully the traffic willl return and strong locomotives like these will be needed.

Ask any driver which class the rate the better loco, I have yet to hear a bad word for the 60.

 

[ailsa]

Surprisingly they are quite fuel efficient, certainly far more so than any of the other older stuff. Not sure about how they compare with 66s as I have never been involved with both types at the same time to be able to make a comparison.

I read somewhere (a magazine if I recall correctly) that 60s are more fuel efficient than 66s. Apparently the new emissions regulations haven't been good for the fuel consumption figures.

 

[37402]

I read somewhere (a magazine if I recall correctly) that 60s are more fuel efficient than 66s. Apparently the new emissions regulations haven't been good for the fuel consumption figures.

60s are FAR more fuel efficient than a 66 even with their age taken into account. 8 cylinders on a 60 vs 16 on a 66.

At the end of the day, there are only a small number of diagrams that actually NEED a 60 due to their trailing load and route, all the others can be covered with a 66 as was proven when the 60 fleet went down to single figures. IMO it is highly questionable whether BR ever had enough 'heavy haul' work that required 100 Class 60s, the number required in traffic being increased by their use on general purpose diagrams.

DB reckoned that, in the short term at least, double heading 66s was cheaper than overhauling 60s. With traffic picking up now though and the possibility of more exports on the horizon, it no longer makes financial sense.

--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

Ask any driver which class the rate the better loco, I have yet to hear a bad word for the 60.

60s will pull a mountain down up to a speed of around 30mph, then a 66 takes over as the superior loco in terms of haulage capability. fuel consumption, driver ambience etc etc is another matter though...!

 

[33056]

Ask any driver which class the rate the better loco, I have yet to hear a bad word for the 60.

I know quite a few that preferred 59s (Yeoman / ARC ones) over 60s and even a couple who hated 60s and were much happier with a 58!

37402 is quite correct about the need for class 60s, nearly all the trains we used them on could be easily managed by something else - in fact their 60mph top speed was a disadvantage in some cases.

 

[route:oxford]

So what would improve the 60s?

Or at least make good use of the spares... Would they make a good "Zombie - Mk2s"? It might not be long until a "Scottish Solution" is being sought by whoever is running East Coast to push/drag their all-electric fleet to Inverness&Aberdeen.

 

[RobShipway]

Could you not re - engine the Class 60's in the same way that Clss 47's where re - engineered with General Motors engines to become Class 57 loco's?

 

[TIMEPLANE]

It's from the Overbridge on "Brian Clough Way" - the A52, so it's looking South

 

[46100ROYALSCOT]

It's from the Overbridge on "Brian Clough Way" - the A52, so it's looking South

Thanks for that.
John