Aviation Specials Magazine Traction Transition Special Issue

A very warm welcome to Traction Transition - The Story of General Motors / EMD power in the UK and Ireland. It was not until 1961 that locos from the main US loco builder General Motors (GM) started to operate in Ireland. It was another 20 years before we saw the first GM loco operate in England, with a yard 'switcher' for Foster Yeoman. The start of the major traction transition in the UK came in 1995 after Foster Yeoman purchased GM main line locos to power their aggregate trains, as BR could not provide power which was reliable and suitable. No UK locos could meet the high-availability sought by Foster Yeoman and no UK builder was prepared to underwrite such a commitment if new British locos were ordered. Thus, Foster Yeoman turned to General Motors to fill their traction requirement.

After UK privatisation in 1996, the new main freight operator, US-based Wisconsin Central, trading in the UK as EWS, sought new power to replace a fleet of near wrecks they inherited. EWS immediately turned to GM and thus the Class 66 soon entered the UK traction scene, together with the Class 67 passenger version. These classes transformed UK traction. Many other operators followed EWS down the Class 66 path and eventually the design was added to the GM European catalogue, with a sizeable fleet now operating throughout mainland Europe. In Ireland, further orders were made, culminating in the 201 Class in the mid-1990s. Back in England, Porterbrook Leasing in partnership with Brush Traction developed a Class 47-57 rebuild project using GM/EMD power units in a Class 47 body.

The General Motors/EMD traction story is one of the most interesting and I sincerely hope you enjoy reading and browsing the pages of this special.

Colin J Marsden, Editor