Class 58 History

Introduction 12/03/2001

The class 58 locomotive was introduced in the UK in 1982, when the first locomotive rolled out of Doncaster works. The loco was a change from the traditional type of loco in that its bodysides were inset resembling more of a Class 20 with 2 cabs. 58001 was soon appearing on test around the East Midlands hauling MGR trains. The first batch of loco's proved popular and after the initial build of 20 this was extended to 35 and eventually 50 loco's. However 58050 wasn't actually delivered until 1987, Doncaster obviously took their time in construction!!  The loco's were numbered 58001-58050 inclusive and all were allocated to Toton when delivered, amazingly they have never been transferred and all still belong to Toton. The Class was synonymous with MGR trains in the Midlands for at least the first 15 years of its career, however with a massive reshuffle of motive power in the 1990's they have spread their wings and now can be seen at places all over the UK except Scotland. The latest in their history sees them operating mainly from Southern/Western region Depots. They are still allocated to Toton and occasionally see traffic in that area. However the biggest and most shameful part is that currently over 25 have been taken out of service for no reason other than "Sheditius" (a term that means 250 Class 66's was 200 too many). So for the last 2 years some 58's have been sitting in open storage awaiting their fate. Just recently it was reported that some may go to Holland, but at the time of writing this hasn't happened. I await the next part of their history in eager anticipation and I for one hope it will not be the cutters torch. Currently (12/3/02) 17 class members remain in Service now allocated to Eastleigh shed. Their duties however still take them into the Midlands and parts of the Eastern region though. How much longer they can last remains to be seen, however now that they are such a small class compared to 60's or sheds the End cannot be that far away.