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- The Daily Diaries
- The Peak Diaries
- First to Last-In Traffic
- First to Last-Front End
- First to Last-Liveries
- First to Last - Naming
- Train Diaries
- Gallery 44 001 - 44 010
- Gallery 45 001 - 45 011
- Gallery 45 012 - 45 022
- Gallery 45 023 - 45 033
- Gallery 45 034 - 45 044
- Gallery 45 045 - 45 055
- Gallery 45 056 - 45 066
- Gallery 45 067 - 45 077
- Gallery 45 101 - 45 110
- Gallery 45 111 - 45 120
- Gallery 45 121 - 45 130
- Gallery 45 131 - 45 140
- Gallery 45 141 - 45 150
- Gallery 46 001 - 46 010
- Gallery 46 011 - 46 020
- Gallery 46 021 - 46 030
- Gallery 46 031 - 46 040
- Gallery 46 041 - 46 050
- Gallery 46 051 - 46 056
- Heritage/Preservation
- Links/Credits
Order of Entering Traffic
With building of the fleet taking place at both Derby and Crewe, the locos didn't enter traffic in numerical order. Click to traffic link to see the details.
photographer unknown. D1 SCAFELL PIKE outside the Test House before entering traffic in August 1959.
Numbering and Renumbering
All 193 Peaks entered traffic in lined Brunswick Green Livery and had a serif style number to both sides of each cab, thus four numbers. This remained the case through the adding of small and large yellow nose-end panels to this livery and also the subsequent economy green and Toton Blue liveries.
This is shown to good effect on two cabs, D72 and D104 seen at Derby Works in 1970.
Photo Jeff McCeever
Here is the cabside number of Toton Blue painted D92 still in the serif style.
The advent of BR Corporate rail blue in late 1966, led to the design team deciding that having the numbers in alphabet script and placed on the bodysides was more aesthetically pleasing. There were still two numbers per side.
Here is D68, one of the first locos so treated, at Derby Works in early 1967.
One anomaly occurred in the Summer of 1968, when D24 appeared in BR Blue Livery. Yes, the loco had four numbers in the alphabet style, but these were placed on the cabside, unlike the rest of the BR Blue fleet.
The loco went into Works for refurbishing on 03/07/1969, where it returned to standard positioning as 24.
With the end of steam in August 1968, BR issued a change in the numbering system stating that D prefixes were no longer required. D55 was the last loco to be turned out with a prefix after a repaint. On September 6th Derby Works turned out 111 and 134, the first two loco's to have no prefix. This increased the popularity of the 44's with
With the end of steam in August 1968, BR issued a change in the numbering system stating that D prefixes were no longer required. D55 was the last loco to be turned out with a prefix after a repaint. On September 6th Derby Works turned out 111 and 134, the first two loco's to have no prefix. This increased the popularity of the 44's with their single digit numbers.
168 appeared at the end of the year with just one number per side, but this was corrected by the following April.
With the no D prefix edict being sent out, depots too were expected to block over the D prefix. In practice, initially only Holbeck adhered to this, blocking out the Ds on its allocated locos in late 1968/early 1969.
On reallocation of a batch of locos in 1972, Holbeck continued this practice, although Bath Road also did a few in 1971/72.
With the no D prefix edict being sent out, depots too were expected to block over the D prefix. In practice, initially only Holbeck adhered to this, blocking out the Ds on its allocated locos in late 1968/early 1969.
On reallocation of a batch of locos in 1972, Holbeck continued this practice, although Bath Road also did a few in 1971/72. Ttoton also belatedly did with its green 44s as with 6 in October 1972.
Holbeck's second batch of D prefix blocking in late Summer 1972 included D11, which remained this way until entering Derby Works for Overhaul in late 1973.
On March 31st 1973, D96 appeared with TOPS number 45 101, which caused much confusion amongst rail enthusiasts, being the first loco renumbered into this system. The loco had four numbers in the standard positions. 45 102 to 45 112 and 45 001 to 45 003 also had the four numbers.
Upon release on 31/08/1973, 45 004(seen here at Nottingham on 13/01/1974) was turned out with just one number per side, next to the Driver side door. This was followed by the first class 46, 46 045 and all subsequent renumberings only had one number per side.
In early 1976 Steve Lawn, a second man at Toton MPD, went on a one man crusade to add the second number to each side, primarily with the 44s, but a handful of 45s also. Some of the numbers were haphazardly placed as seen with 44 008 above. Presumably, he was told to desist once the bigwigs became aware!!
In later years, after the advent of Tippex, a good few locos had their old number painted back on the painted over stencil at the second man end, as seen here with 45 033 (39) in 1982
In 1984 two withdrawn class 46s, 009 and 023 were given, but never carried, the departmental numbers 97 401 and 97 402. However after the withdrawal of class 46 operations in November 1984, 46 035 and 46 045 went straight into departmental service as 97 403 and 97404.
97404, erstwhile 46 045 was given smaller numbers and overwritten in the standard number place without a gap between class and serial number.
After withdrawal in 1985, 45 017 was put into departmental service at Toton as ADB968024.
In the final year or so of traffic several locos were given livery adjustments which included having the number on the nose-end, most notably as seen here on 45 013.
In October 1987, five 45/0s were regeared at March TMD and put into departmental stock primarily for working engineering trains in the North East of England in association with the electrification of the ECML. The locos were 45 022, 029, 034, 040 and 066, and became 97409 - 413 respectively.