Colas Rail Wins Eastern Region Thunderbird Contract on East Coast Main Line

Colas Rail UK’s Freight division has secured a major new contract from Network Rail to provide Thunderbird rescue and recovery services across the Eastern Region, covering the key East Coast Main Line corridor between London and Newcastle.

The agreement will run for an initial three-year term from January 2026, with an option to extend for a further three years. Under the contract, Colas Rail will deliver a round-the-clock rescue and recovery capability, supporting both passenger and freight operators in the event of breakdowns or service disruption on one of the UK’s most intensively used rail routes.

As part of the arrangement, two Class 67 locomotives will be allocated exclusively to the service and based at Newark Northgate Sidings. The centrally located depot will allow rapid deployment to incidents along the route, helping to minimise delays and restore services as quickly as possible.

Colas Rail’s Freight Operations Director, Sep Semsarzadeh, said the company was proud to have been selected for the role. He said the contract would see dedicated Class 67 locomotives and an experienced pool of drivers ready to respond at any time, providing support to both freight operating companies (FOCs) and train operating companies (TOCs) when required.

The award underlines Network Rail’s continued focus on strengthening resilience and preparedness for incidents on the East Coast Main Line, which carries high-frequency passenger services alongside vital freight traffic.

Geoff Hibberd, Network Rail’s Head of Procurement and Commercial Strategy, said the contract would bolster reliability on the route. He said maintaining robust plans for dealing with incidents is essential to keeping trains moving safely and reliably, and that deploying dedicated Class 67 locomotives from Newark would enhance resilience on one of the country’s busiest rail corridors.