When British Rail was privatized in 1996, English, Welsh and Scottish Railway (EWS), then a subsidiary of the American company Wisconsin Central managed by Ed Burkhardt, took over most of the activities of the goods branch. Many of the locomotives that EWS inherited were at the end of their careers, and company executives doubted the reliability of more modern machines. EWS therefore contacted the Electro-Motive division of General Motors (EMD), which proposed its model JT42CWR, developed from the Class 59 locomotive of British Rail, which therefore received the coding "Class 66" in the system British classification. EWS ordered 250 units of this locomotive, which were built in London, Ontario, Canada. The Class 66 incorporates many ideas from America and differs significantly from the Class 60 of British Rail, built quite recently according to a more traditional scheme. In 1998 Freightliner ordered locomotives of this type, followed later by GB Railfreight and Direct Rail Services. The Class 66 has also been chosen by new entrants to continental Europe where it is currently certified for operation in Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Poland. EWS also had them certified in France to develop its activity there through its subsidiary Euro Cargo Rail. Their certification is also expected in the Czech Republic and in Italy. Because of their well-established British identity, EMD Europe markets this locomotive under the name of EMD Series 66. The last Class 66 produced has been delivered in February 2016 to GB Railfreight. The picture shows the #66239 awaiting their next duty in the Saint-Louis yard in August 2012. Source Wikipedia.
