Class 92 is Brushed up nicely
Pan Up
The Class 92s were built from 1993 by Brush for the expected freight boom and the Nightstar sleeper services through the Channel Tunnel. Tunnel freight traffic never came up to expectations and Nightstar, like North of London Eurostar, was stopped before it started when economics overcame politics.
At privatisation the fleet was split, with GB Railfreight eventually buying 16 of them, mostly from the ‘meadow’ fleet, or more accurately from store at Crewe Electric Depot. The Class 92s have become an integral part of GBRf’s efforts to explore new markets to help the rail sector grow.
STEP ONE – BACK ON TRACK
Brush is well experienced in bringing locos back to life where the first task is basically weeding, but step one of the refurbishing was only enough to get them in service again, not fit for the penalty-rich environment of the modern railway. This 2009 programme saw the bogies, motors and pumps overhauled along with corrosion repairs, but by the time the third loco was done it was becoming obvious the scope needed to be increased.
As John Smith, Managing Director of GBRf, said: ‘There is still a lot of life left in the Class 92s, which is why we are so keen to see t…
