was withdrawn in 1999. It was sold to the French train manufacturing company Alsthom, who used it as a source of spare parts for the remainder of the fleet before scrapping its remnants at Barrow Hill during January 2002. It was the first Class 87 to be withdrawn and scrapped. Some thyristor equipment has been preserved by AC Locomotive Group. This locomotive was, in many respects, the prototype for later electric locomotives such as the Class 90 and . Second batch Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, BR undertook numerous schemes, including the electrification of the East Coast Main Line (ECML) and the ultimately-cancelled procurement of the Advanced Passenger Train (APT), (the latter being at one point intended to succeed the Class 87 as BR's next major InterCity express train) that had led to a significant nationwide shortage of electric traction. Various different efforts were launched during this era to alleviate this shortage, including an electrified version of the InterCity 125 (known as the HST-E), the mixed-traffic locomotive and what would become the InterCity 225. It was clear that additional electric locomotives were necessary no matter what, as both the 1950s era and electric locomotives were nearing the end of their viable service lives and had become quite unreliable. The Class 87 locomotives had proved to be capable and reliable since their introduction roughly one decade earlier, thus there was considerable interest procuring additional units as a low-cost option with virtually no risk for the West Coast Main Line (WCML). BREL issued its submission to produce an initial batch of 25 Class 87/2s, which quickly received a favourable reception. The BR board decided that it would curtail its plans to procure the InterCity 225 for the WCML and instead procure the Class 87/2 to haul its intended traffic. Accordingly, the procurement of the type was assured. This move meant that no InterCity 225s would ever be procured for the WCML. Authorisation for building the locomotives was given in 1985. Originally conceived as an updated version of the Class 87, the type was initially designated as the Class 87/2 prior to their introduction, however as it became clear that they differed considerably in appearance, and in a number of technical aspects from the older Class 87 fleet, they were redesignated as the Class 90. A total of 50 Class 90 locomotives were manufactured by BREL at the Crewe Works from 1985 to