LMS Route: Birmingham New Street to Tamworth

LMS Route: Nuneaton to Birmingham New Street

Washwood Heath Sidings: mrwhg1659

British Railways Type 4 No D139 is seen with a brake-tender in tow needed for working loose-coupled freight trains on 5th September 1962. Behind D139 are an unidentified BR 9F 2-10-0 locomotive and an ex-LMS 8F 2-8-0 locomotive. The cooling-towers of Nechells Power Station are prominent in the background. D139 was built by Derby works in November 1961 and later reclassified under TOPS as a Class 46 locomotive and given the running number 46002 which it carried until September 1981 to be scrapped by Swindon works. Diesel brake tenders were introduced after it was discovered that the newly introduced diesels in the 1950s and 1960s had insufficient brake force when used on unfitted goods trains, so these vehicles were introduced to increase the braking available. A total of 122 vehicles were built and were numbered between B964000 and B964121. In traffic, the brake-tender would normally be placed in front of or just behind the diesel locomotive.

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