Cotswold Rail
| Company type | Private company |
|---|---|
| Industry | Railway spot-hire and railtour operations |
| Founded | 2000 |
| Headquarters | Gloucester , United Kingdom |
| Products | Spot-hire of shunting and mainline locomotives, railtour services |
Cotswold Rail was a UK-based enterprise located in Gloucester specializing in the spot-hire of both shunting and mainline locomotives.
History
Established in 2000, Cotswold Rail began its operations as a broker for rolling stock. By June of that year, it had put up 13 Class 141 Pacers for sale.
The following year, the company acquired Class 08 shunting locomotives, which were then leased to industrial clients and mainline rail operators.
Expanding its fleet, Cotswold Rail obtained Class 47 locomotives and from June 2002 until June 2009 supplied these units to Anglia Railways and its successor National Express East Anglia. These locomotives served as rescue engines and hauled Mark 2 sets on weekend summer routes between Norwich and Great Yarmouth.
In 2004, the company arranged a lease for twelve former Virgin Trains Mark 3 coaches from the leasing firm Porterbrook.
By April 2005, Cotswold Rail had taken on several Class 87 electric locomotives with the intention of assembling a fleet of ten for spot-hire, charters, and intermodal freight services. Nonetheless, all these locomotives were returned to Porterbrook by the following year.
Two former Virgin CrossCountry High Speed Train sets were leased in September 2005 but were given back by August 2006.
Also in 2005, Cotswold Rail acquired Advenza Freight primarily to utilize its safety certification for freight operations. The company further grew in 2007 by purchasing the railtour organizer Steamy Affairs.
After HM Revenue & Customs successfully applied to liquidate Advenza Freight due to unpaid tax liabilities in October 2009, Cotswold Rail entered voluntary administration in January 2010.
Fleet
The company's locomotives were painted in a silver livery accented with red and blue stripes. They bore names inspired by geographical landmarks such as Cam Peak and the Fosse Way, as well as notable figures from the music world including John Peel, Joe Strummer, and Captain Sensible.
Depot
In 2006, Cotswold Rail took on lease of the disused Gloucester Horton Road depot situated next to Gloucester station. This site, which had not been operational since 1992, became the base for their offices and locomotive storage.
Blue Pullman
Cotswold Rail secured the rights to operate the Blue Pullman service in 2007 and founded The Blue Pullman Train Co. Following the receivership of FM Rail, it acquired coaches painted in Blue Pullman livery and relaunched the service in February of that year using silver Class 47 locomotives.