European Railroad Discussion > Brand, spanking,new.

Colas (one of the smaller freight/infrastructure operators in the UK) has just started to take delivery of their Class 70s. They're currently running around my part of the world. Here are 2 of them top and tail of a ballast train heading for Dawlish (where the railway was breached by the recent storms) through my local station at Castle Cary.

---

Very nice. Certainly wish I was there.

I like your picture, and the location but I have to say that the locos leave cold. I'm sure we had something similar roaming the rails some years ago, Ah yes it was called a class 58.
Once again great photo.
Regards,
Keith G, London, UK

CIT1023 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> but I have
> to say that the locos leave cold. I'm sure we had
> something similar roaming the rails some years
> ago, Ah yes it was called a class 58.

I think they were both better looking and less flammable.

The nickname of the Freightliner class 70s is generally "Ugly". Some people started calling the Colas versions "Cugly" but there's another faction using "Warthog". If I had to choose I'd probably choose Warthog.

I've also heard them called Bettys as in Ugly Betty and Fugley - you can work that one out.

This did go down to Dawlish, or at least most of the way. They are really going like crazy there--with two weeks left until the 4 April deadline I think that they will make it, at least as far as the track is concerned. There are some additional problems with the signalling that might take a bit longer to work out though.
I think that the Colas scheme suits the 70s better than the Freightliner green--I think all of the contrasting colours and lines distracts from the general 70s look.