The 86 Class fleet were the final electric locomotives ordered by the (then) State Rail Authority. The class were used on passenger and freight (mostly general freight and coal) traffic between Sydney and Lithgow, Newcastle and Wollongong (Port Kembla). Exceptionally powerful DC-powered locomotives, the class fell out of favor when FreightCorp was sold to Toll/Patrick to form Pacific National. Pacific National chose to divest itself of the class to a number of other operators, with most of the class being scrapped for their high copper content, rather than used on freight traffic. A handful survive into preservation.