Railfreight

Last updated

Railfreight
TypeState owned
IndustryRail freight
Founded1982
Defunct1994
FateSplit into regional sectors for privatisation
Successor1994: Loadhaul, Mainline Freight, Transrail
1995: Freightliner
Services Intermodal, Wagonload freight, unit trains
Parent British Rail
Divisions Railfreight Distribution. Trainload: Metals, Petroleum, Coal.


Railfreight was a sector of British Rail responsible for all freight operations on the British network. The division was created in 1982 when BR sought to assign particular stock and management to the evolving requirements of freight traffic.

Contents

History

Railfreight existed as a single unit from 1982 until 1987 as the rail freight division of British Rail. In 1987 BRs freight operations were further divided according to the type of train operated and material carried; the Trainload Freight division and its sub-sectors handled unit trains of coal, metal, aggregates, oil or petroleum, LPG, petro-chemicals, and construction materials, Railfreight Distribution handled intermodal and non-unit train work, and channel tunnel freight. Activities which were not assigned to one of the new Trainload Freight or Railfreight Distribution sub-sectors were then continued under the Railfreight General banner, Railfreight General was dissolved in 1989, its limited responsibilities being taken over by Railfreight Distribution. [1]

Brand

Railfreight's image had lagged behind the image of the other areas of British Rail, and staff morale reflected this. As part of major restructuring as traffic moved away from wagonload and towards unit trains and containerization, British Rail commissioned a major redesign of the brand from locomotive down to depot entry sign. Roundel Design Group took inspiration from aircraft squadron markings, distinct and visible from a distance, which would also look well even when soiled. [2] To improve staff morale, over £8 million were invested in depot facilities, giving them a bright and fresh appearance, improving crew spaces, catching up on overdue maintenance. [3] Unique plaques that represented major depots, were applied to locomotives and some rolling stock; with equipment easily identifiable as to its home depot, staff felt motivated to take more care in maintaining the locomotives assigned to them. [4]

The rebranding extended beyond just rolling stock and locomotives; signage, depots, vehicles also received the new paint schemes and logos to tie the sectors together. The use of Rail Alphabet however remained consistent with the rest of British Rail.

Logos

In 1987, British Rail unveiled a new brand and image for Railfreight, introducing six logos for the six new sectors that Railfreight was divided into, Railfreight [lower-alpha 1] , Speedlink Distribution [lower-alpha 2] , Railfreight Petroleum, Railfreight Coal, Railfreight Construction, Railfreight Metals. [5] [6] One of the more subtle aspects, was a 'vertical marker strip' used to tie publications, equipment and signage together, which duplicated the distinctive aspect of the main logo, such as 'triangles' for Speedlink Distribution and rectangles for General. [7]

Livery

Railfreight grey

The Railfreight sector was immediately identifiable through the introduction of a new 'Railfreight Grey' livery, originally created for the new Class 58 locomotives which began to appear in 1982, [8] and then soon applied to most of the locomotives and rolling stock assigned to the division. This new colour scheme was very distinctive on the British network as it represented the first clear break from the universal application of variations of Rail Blue for 15 years.

Railfreight red stripe

The new livery was further distinguished, in locomotive classes such as the Class 58 and Class 20 where the bodywork was mounted on a solebar, by painting the solebar red to give a distinctive red stripe running the length of the lower bodyside, a livery known as 'Railfreight Red Stripe'. Other classes of locomotives with an integrated monocoque construction and so no solebar, such as the Class 26, Class 31, Class 37, Class 47 and Class 56, also had red stripes applied to the lower body side. [4]

Two-tone grey

Some of the monocoque locomotives briefly acquired a red stripe in 1987; however following the creation of Trainload Freight and Railfreight Distribution in 1987, they were soon repainted in the new sub-sector two-tone grey livery with appropriate decals. Four remaining Railfreight locomotives and rolling stock, not assigned to the sub-sectors, were painted in two-tone grey livery with dedicated Railfreight General decals.
In 1992, Freight Connection 92 saw three Class 90s repainted into fictional interpretations of liveries from France, Germany and Belgium. Following the event, it was a suggestion of the personnel responsible for painting the locomotives that Railfreight Distribution adopt the French paint scheme. After some reworking, the design for the modified livery was finalised in March 1993; it revised the proportions of the grey sections and changed the roof colour slightly. Most noticeable was the inclusion of "Railfreight Distribution" on the sides, the only sector to have its sector name displayed on locomotives. [9]

Footnotes

  1. Later known as 'Railfreight General'.
  2. Later known as 'Railfreight Distribution'

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">DB Cargo UK</span> British rail freight company

DB Cargo UK, is a British rail freight company headquartered in Doncaster, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">British Rail Class 86</span> Class of British electric locomotives

The British Rail Class 86 is a class of electric locomotives built during the 1960s. Developed as a 'standard' electric locomotive from earlier prototype models, one hundred of these locomotives were built from 1965 to 1966 to haul trains on the then newly electrified West Coast Main Line (WCML) from London Euston to Birmingham, Crewe, Liverpool, Manchester and later Glasgow and Preston. Introduction of the class enabled the replacement of many steam locomotives, which were finally withdrawn by British Rail in 1968.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">British Rail Class 26</span> Class of 47 Bo′Bo′ 1160hp diesel-electric locomotives

The British Rail Class 26 diesel locomotives, also known as the BRCW Type 2, were built by the Birmingham Railway Carriage and Wagon Company (BRCW) at Smethwick in 1958-59. Forty seven examples were built, and the last were withdrawn from service in 1994. Like their higher-powered sisters, the BRCW Classes 27 and 33, they had all-steel bodies and cab ends with fibreglass cab roofs. They were numbered D5300-D5346.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">British Rail brand names</span>

British Rail was the brand image of the nationalised railway owner and operator in Great Britain, the British Railways Board, used from 1965 until its breakup and sell-off from 1993 onwards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">British Rail Class 87</span> Class of British electric locomotives

The British Rail Class 87 is a type of electric locomotive designed and built by British Rail Engineering Limited (BREL) between 1973 and 1975. A total of thirty-six locomotives were constructed, to work passenger and freight services over the West Coast Main Line (WCML).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Loadhaul</span>

Loadhaul Ltd. was a railfreight operator based in the north-east of the United Kingdom. It was formed in 1994, as part of the privatisation of British Rail, and acquired in 1996 by a consortium headed by Wisconsin Central, then merged into a new company English Welsh & Scottish Railway. It is now part of DB Cargo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mainline Freight</span>

Mainline Freight was a trainload rail freight operator based in Islington, London, England with operations extending to Yorkshire in the north and Somerset in the west. It was formed from part of British Rail's Trainload Freight division as part of the privatisation of British Rail.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Railfreight Distribution</span>

Railfreight Distribution was a sub-sector of British Rail, created by the division in 1987 of British Rail's previous Railfreight sector. It was responsible for non-trainload freight operations, as well as Freightliner and Intermodal services. In its early years, the division was occasionally referred to as Speedlink Distribution. It was later responsible for freight operations through the Channel Tunnel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">British Rail Class 37</span> Class of diesel-electric locomotives

The British Rail Class 37 is a diesel-electric locomotive. Also known as the English Electric Type 3, the class was ordered as part of the British Rail modernisation plan. They were numbered in two series, D6600–D6608 and D6700–D6999.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">British Rail Class 92</span> British electric railway freight locomotive

The British Rail Class 92 is a dual-voltage electric locomotive, which can run on 25 kV AC from overhead wires or 750 V DC from a third rail. It was designed specifically to operate services through the Channel Tunnel between Great Britain and France. Eurotunnel indicates the Class 92 locomotive as the reference for other locomotives which railway undertakings might want to get certified for usage in the Channel tunnel.

Trainload Freight was the sector of British Rail responsible for trainload freight services. The division was subdivided into four sub-sectors; coal, petroleum, metals and construction.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">British Rail Class 90</span> British electric locomotive

The British Rail Class 90 electric locomotives were built for mixed-traffic duties, operating from 25 kV AC overhead lines and producing 5,000 bhp (3,700 kW). They weigh 84.5 tonnes and can typically achieve a top speed of 110 mph (177 km/h).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">British Rail Class 60</span> Class of diesel electric locomotives

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">British Rail Class 20</span> Class of diesel-electric locomotives

The British Rail Class 20, otherwise known as an English Electric Type 1, is a class of diesel-electric locomotive. In total, 228 locomotives in the class were built by English Electric between 1957 and 1968, the large number being in part because of the failure of other early designs in the same power range to provide reliable locomotives.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">British Rail Class 59</span> Class of diesel electric locomotives

The British Rail Class 59 is a fleet of Co-Co diesel-electric locomotives built between 1985 and 1995 by the Electro-Motive Division of General Motors for use in Great Britain. A total of 15 locomotives were built for three different operators.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tinsley Motive Power Depot</span>

Tinsley Motive Power Depot, latterly Tinsley Traction Maintenance Depot (TMD), was a railway depot in Tinsley, South Yorkshire, near Sheffield. Access by road was from Brinsworth, near Rotherham. The depot was situated on the freight line between Treeton Junction and the A631 Shepcote Lane.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">GB Railfreight</span> Rail freight company in the United Kingdom

GB Railfreight (GBRf) is a rail freight company in the United Kingdom. As of 2022, it is owned by the global investment company Infracapital.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">British Rail corporate liveries</span>

The history of British Rail's corporate liveries is quite complex. Although from the mid-1960s to the 1980s the organisation was associated with "Rail Blue", a number of other schemes were also used, especially when it was split into operating units or "sectors" in the mid-1980s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">JNR Class EF64</span> Electric locomotive type operated in Japan

The Class EF64 (EF64形) is a 6-axle DC electric locomotive type operated on passenger and freight services in Japan since 1964.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rolling stock of Network SouthEast</span> Former British Rail sector

Network SouthEast (NSE), the sector of British Rail which ran passenger services in London and southeast England between 1986 and 1994, operated a wide variety of rolling stock during its existence. The majority of the network was electrified, and further electrification schemes took place during the 1986–1994 period; and the 7,000 vehicles owned by NSE in 1986 consisted of a mixture of electric, diesel-electric and diesel multiple units, diesel locomotives and the coaches they hauled.

References

  1. Hendry, Robert (2003). British Railway Goods Wagons in Colour 1960 - 2003. Hinckley England: Midland Publishing. p. 95. ISBN   1 85780 170 9.
  2. Job, Nick (November 1988). "Basic Elements Introduction". doublearrow.co.uk. British Rail. Retrieved 12 January 2019.
  3. Job, Nick (November 1988). "Environment Introduction". doublearrow.co.uk. British Rail. Retrieved 12 January 2019.
  4. 1 2 Carter, Andy (9 September 2015). "Three Shades of Grey (Railfreight 1987 corporate identity, Roundel Design Group, UK)". The Beauty of Transport. Archived from the original on 12 January 2019. Retrieved 12 January 2019.
  5. Job, Nick (February 1988). "Vertical Marker Stripes". doublearrow.co.uk. British Rail. Retrieved 12 January 2019.
  6. Sutton, Philip (2007). "Railfreight: The Making of a Design Classic". Rail Express. No. 137. pp. 20–27. ISSN   1362-234X.
  7. Job, Nick (February 1988). "Vertical Marker Stripes". doublearrow.co.uk. British Rail. Retrieved 12 January 2019.
  8. Railfreight Archived 15 September 2010 at the Wayback Machine , Class 58 locomotive group
  9. Wiggins, James (12 December 2018). "Redefining a Modern Classic (Railfreight Distribution 1993 Visual Identity)". The Beauty of Transport. Archived from the original on 12 January 2019. Retrieved 12 January 2019.