Green Diesel Days

Publication Date15th August 2019

Book FormatPaperback

pages96

Illustrations180

Height234

Width165

A look in colour at the diesel locomotives that were brought in to take over from steam as part of the 1955 Railway Modernisation Plan.
Regular Price £15.99 Online Price: £14.39
Availability: In stock
ISBN
9781445694535
The 1955 Railway Modernisation Plan provided for the introduction of 2,500 new diesel locomotives, with initial orders for 171 examples, to replace steam locomotives on Britain’s railways. The Modernisation Plan was the death knell for steam traction, arguing that dieselisation should take place as quickly as the new locomotives could be built. In 1956, for the first time, more diesel locomotives were built than steam.

However, several of the Pilot Scheme orders were for batches of ten or twenty machines, without a prototype, a decision that BR would later come to regret. Maintenance and reliability would be problems for these early diesel locomotives. Most coaching stock in use in the late 1950s did not allow for electrical train heating, so boilers had to be fitted to the locomotives to heat the carriages, which in turn caused weight problems.

This book takes a look, in full colour, at the green diesel days on Britain’s railways as steam was being phased out.
Write Your Own Review
Only registered users can write reviews. Please Sign in or create an account