Hanson Traction

Hanson Traction Ltd was a locomotive leasing company based at Washwood Heath, Birmingham, West Midlands.

They were the first company to return class 56 locomotives to mainline use in the United Kingdom [1] after the previous fleet (operated by Fastline) was withdrawn in 2008, owing to a decline in traffic levels (specifically the intermodal arm).

[2] Both of these 56s returned to the mainline in late 2008 and have seen use with Colas Rail, having appeared on their Washwood Heath to Immingham & Boston to Washwood Heath steel workings (the former was a short lived trial run), Dagenham to Dollands Moor "Transfesa" trains and Dollands Moor to Hams Hall Norfolk Line container workings.

50008 is currently residing at the BARS depot in Washwood Heath where it is undergoing repairs and reinstatement of the vacuum braking & AWS equipment removed for the abortive move to Peru some years ago.

47270 Swift had a short spell with Hanson Traction before he parted ways with the company to form Boden Rail Ltd in early 2010.

Hanson Traction's core depot was the former Alstom facility at Washwood Heath in the West Midlands, which it began using in 2009.