Colas confirms intention to reduce use of Class 56s during 2025

Colas Rail has stood down two of its ten Class 56s from traffic (56087/096), and has confirmed that the fleet is likely to be progressively run down this year.

The freight operator owns 56049/051/078/094/302 and has 56087/090/096/105/113 leased from Beacon Rail. Of these locomotives, 56087 last worked in September 2021 and has been stopped ever since. Its paintwork is now very faded.

Despite this, all ten remain in the active COFS pool. 56096 was stopped in May 2024.

56094 was also briefly stopped but has since returned to traffic, while 56051/113/302 have also been stopped for repairs - leaving just 56049/078/090/105 in use, alongside the reactivated 56094.

It has not helped the future for the Class 56s that some of their booked work, such as bitumen tanks to Preston Docks, has ended. There is also an issue obtaining parts to keep the others in traffic.

The only other current main line operator of Class 56s is DC Rail. It has just 56103 in traffic and 56091 stored out of use at Leicester, although it is expected to add 56301 to its operational fleet this year.

GB Railfreight owns one example (56098), which is limited in what it can do owing to driver knowledge, and has been seconded to the Rail Innovation and Development Centre at Melton Mowbray. It has previously been on spot hire to DC Rail.

Progress Rail owns 56081 and 56303, both of which are stored pending developments.

Colas also has four locomotives on long hire from GBRf (59003 and 66790-792), and one from Freightliner (70009), which has eased its traction availability.

Colas acquired its first Class 56s in 2012. All had previously been owned (and retired) by EWS/DB Schenker, so they have been at work now for nearly 13 years without any full overhauls.

Maintenance is undertaken by Boden Rail Engineering at Colwick.

Colas acquired most of its Class 56s in 2012 from European Metal Recycling (which in had turn had purchased them from DB Schenker in December 2011), although 56051/090 were bought from UK Rail Leasing (which had also bought them from EMR).

Meanwhile, 56302 (the former 56124) was acquired from Ed Stevenson, who bought the locomotive from the receivers after its use with Jarvis Fastline ended when the company went bust.

Most were returned to traffic fairly quickly, although 56049/051 were later additions to the fleet. They were used on all manner of duties, including timber,

petroleum, infrastructure and aggregates work.

The Class 56s date from 1976 and were a Brush design - essentially a mixing of the latest development of the English Electric 16CSVT engine (the Ruston 16RK3CT) placed in a modified Class 47 body.

The first 30 were built by Electroputere in Romania, while the remainder were built at BREL at Doncaster (56031-115) and Crewe (56116-135), with the last being delivered in 1984.

The last were retired from the main line in March 2004 by EWS, although several were then hired in France prior to their UK comeback - first with Fastline and then with Colas.

By Pip Dunn