Class 40 Profile

Introduced in March 1958, this was a fleet of 200 Type 4 Locomotives ordered under British Railways 1955 Modernisation Plan. This was the first order under the plan to be placed with an outside contractor in 1955, when the first of several orders for Type 4 locos was place with English Electric. These locomotives were ordered for use on the Eastern and London Midland Regions where they initially worked main line trains from London to Glasgow, Manchester, Liverpool, Edinburgh, etc. In later years when more powerful diesel classes were introduced, they reverted to freight and some passenger haulage. The first loco D322, was withdrawn in September 1967 after receiving collision damage, and cut up at Crewe in November of the same year. The first 'proper' withdrawals began in January 1976. The last loco withdrawn, in May 1988, was D200 which had become something of a celebrity loco, being requested for numerous railtours - it is now preserved along with other examples of the class.