Railfreight

Railfreight was a sector of British Rail responsible for all freight operations on the British network. The division was created in 1982 when BR sought to assign particular stock and management to the evolving requirements of freight traffic. It existed as a single unit until 1987 when BR freight operations were further divided according to type of material carried, and the Trainload Freight subsectors and Railfreight Distribution were introduced. Activities which were not assigned to one of the new "Trainload Freight" or "Railfreight Distribution" subsectors were then continued under the Railfreight General banner.

Livery

The Railfreight sector was immediately identifiable through the introduction of a new 'Railfreight Grey' livery, which was applied to most of the locomotives and rolling stock assigned to the division. This new colour scheme was very distinctive on the British network as it represented the first clear break from the universal application of variations of Rail Blue for 15 years. Shortly after the original livery was first seen, a newer variation with a red stripe across the lower bodyside became the standard and was known as 'Railfreight Red Stripe'. Following the creation of the "Trainload Freight" and "Railfreight Distribution" subsectors, many of the remaining dedicated Railfreight locomotives and rolling stock were painted in two-tone grey livery with dedicated "Railfreight General" decals.