British Rail Class 60

British Rail Class 60
An EWS Class 60 at Castleton East Junction
Type and origin Power type Diesel-electric Builder Brush Traction, Loughborough Build date 1989–1993 Total produced 100
Specifications Configuration: ​  • UIC Co′Co′  • Commonwealth Co-Co Gauge 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge Minimum curve 80 metres (4.0 chains)[1] Wheelbase 15.3 m (50.2 ft)[2] Length 21.34 m (70 ft 0 in)[2] Width 2.64 m (8 ft 8 in)[2] Height 3.95 m (13 ft 0 in)[2] Loco weight 129 t (127 long tons; 142 short tons) or 131 t (129 long tons; 144 short tons)[2] Fuel capacity 5,900 litres (1,300 imp gal; 1,560 US gal) Prime mover Mirrlees Blackstone 8MB275T[3][4] Displacement 18,100 cm3 (1,100 in3) per cylinder Alternator Brush BA1006A Traction motors 6× Brush TM2161A Cylinders 8 MU working Within own class only Train heating None Train brakes Air
Performance figures Maximum speed 60 mph (97 km/h)[2] Power output Engine: 3,100 bhp (2,300 kW) at rail: 2,415 bhp (1,801 kW)[2] Tractive effort Maximum: 106,500 lbf (474 kN)[2] Brakeforce 62 kN (13,900 lbf) or 74 kN (16,600 lbf)[2]
Career Operators British Rail DB Cargo UK DCRail GB Railfreight Numbers 60001–60015 60017–60100 60500 (originally 60016) Axle load class Route availability 8 Disposition 29 in service, 66 stored, 3 preserved, 2 scrapped

The British Rail Class 60 is a class of Co-Co heavy freight diesel-electric locomotives built by Brush Traction. They are nicknamed Tugs by rail enthusiasts.

During the 1980s, it became increasingly apparent that British Rail required a more capable Type 5 locomotive for its heavy freight trains. Dissatisfaction with the British Rail Class 56's reliability led to the stipulation of a 95 per cent availability, a stringent requirement at the time. A total of three bids were received to a competitive tender issued on 10 August 1987; of these, Brush Traction's submission was selected and an order for 100 locomotives was issued during the following year. Despite the first example being completed during June 1989, due to a number of technical issues discovered during testing, the first examples of the Class 60 would not enter revenue service until late 1990. At a cost of £1.5 million each, the locomotives were the largest single expenditure in a restructuring of the Railfreight sector of BR, which over a three-year period, saw a £264 annual loss turned into a £44 million profit through management changes and traffic-specific organisation.^[5]

Operating during the final years of British Rail, the entire Class 60 fleet became the property of English Welsh & Scottish (EWS) following the privatisation of British Rail during the mid-1990s. While the company was reportedly unimpressed by the type's performance, it was retained for heavy freight duties while much of the fleet was stored and subsequently sold on to other operators. Between 2004 and 2007, typically between 50 and 75% of the fleet would be out of action at a given time. However, during November 2010, EWS's successor, DB Schenker, announced that a portion of the fleet would be overhauled, referring to such units as Super 60s and extending their service life through to around 2025. Not all Class 60s received such overhauls however. During 2020, a Class 60 became the first example of the type to be scrapped, while another became the first to be preserved.