The Steam Team | Little Western and Arlesdale | Skarloey Railway | Foreign Engines | Secondary Characters | Non-Rail Characters | Rolling Stock | Humans
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Bertie the Bus
- "But to beat you over that hill, I'd have to grow wings and be an Aeroplane."Voiced by: Rupert Degas (Seasons 15-16), Keith Wickham (Season 17-present)Basis: Post-War Leyland Tiger PS seriesBuilt: 1929/1948
A bus Thomas met on his branch line. The two of them had a famous race from one end of the branch line to the other, in which Thomas won, earning Bertie's respect.
- Alliterative Name: Bertie the Bus.
- Determinator: Is this in "Bertie's Chase", where he stops at nothing to catch up to Edward.
- Demoted to Extra: Since the transition to CGi, his appearances have become scarce, when he does show up, he's usually either avoiding an accident, or in need of rescue after getting stuck or breaking down. However, the later seasons give him more screentime, as he is the main non rail vehicle for passengers on Thomas' branchline. And now that Bulgy's back, he acts as the double decker's foil.
- Drives Like Crazy: Implied at times in the show where loud skids can be heard as he drives. He's obsessed with being faster than Thomas, after all.
- Early-Bird Cameo: He made a cameo in "Thomas, Terence, and the Snow" before making his official debut in "Thomas and Bertie".
- Fantastic Racism: Briefly in "Trust Thomas" after the engines fail to get tar for his broken roads, he labels them unreliable. He takes it back completely when Thomas gets this fixed.
- Friendly Rival: His races with Thomas (though to prove the worth of their respective vehicles) are rather playful and in good fun.
- Help, I'm Stuck!: Bertie gets stuck in the mud near the end of "Edward, Trevor, and the Really Useful Party".
- Humble Pie: In "Edward, Trevor, and the Really Useful Party", Bertie being stuck on the mud for teasing Trevor for being old. This made him apologize to him.
- I Just Want to Be Special: His dialogue in "Stop That Bus!" hints at this.Bertie: I....came to see what you were doing. You're very busy, Thomas. You whoosh and you wheesh all over the island. You see things I can never see. You do things I can never do. I wait, to pick up passengers.
- Interspecies Friendship: Bertie, a bus, is friends with Thomas, a tank engine.
- Laser-Guided Karma: In "Edward, Trevor, and the Really Useful Party", Bertie teases Trevor for being old. As a result, Bertie gets stuck in some mud.
- Nice Guy: Is friendly towards the engines, willing to help out when they're in need.
- Red Is Heroic: Is red, and a friend of Thomas.
- One-Steve Limit: Bertie isn't the only "Bert" on the show. There's also Bert (the diesel and 'Arry's twin. He is often called Iron Bert to avoid confusion), Bert the blue miniature Arlesdale engine, and Bertram (season 5).
- Perpetual Smiler: In Season One, where Bertie had only one face mask. Subverted in later seasons, where he has a wider scope of facial expressions like the others.
- She's a Man in Japan: Is female in the Polish dub.
- Verbal Tic: In Thomas and the Magic Railroad, he ends almost every sentence with "vroom vroom".
- Vitriolic Best Buds: Enjoys teasing Thomas, but all the same is charitable when he needs help.
Terence the Tractor
- "They're not ugly, they're caterpillars! I can go anywhere, I don't need rails."Basis: Caterpillar Model 70Voiced by: Tom StourtonBuilt: 1934
A tractor who Thomas meets on his branch line. Thomas finds his caterpillar treads to be unusual, until Terence rescues him from a snowdrift.
- A Day in the Limelight: In "Terence Breaks the Ice".
- Alliterative Name: Terence the Tractor.
- Became Their Own Antithesis: In "Terence Breaks the Ice", Terence ignores his own rules to be sensible in the snow and gets cocky about it, resulting in the Christmas tree sinking into the pond.
- The Bus Came Back: Terence makes his return to the series in season 21. He was last seen in season 7 with his last speaking appearance being in season 5.
- Demoted to Extra: Was demoted to non-speaking cameos after season 5 and vanished from the show completely following the CGI switchover, though Terence did return in season 21.
- Early Installment Character-Design Difference: Terence originally had a widow's peak. This was removed and replaced with eyebrows upon his return in the CGI series.
- Fantastic Racism: Was on the receiving end of this from Thomas, who thought that Terence's caterpillar treads were ugly.
- Nice Guy: Terence is friendly, helpful, and forgiving. The CGI series shows him a bit more prideful, but still remains friendly about it.
- Perpetual Smiler: Terence’s model only ever used a couple of face masks, all of which are pretty much just a variation of the same grin. This is averted after he reappeared in the CGI series.
- Swapped Roles: From "Thomas, Terence and the Snow". In "Terence Breaks the Ice" it is Terence that gets cocky about the snow and ice, with Thomas having to help him after an accident occurs.
Trevor the Traction Engine
- "Oh yes, I like children."Basis: William Foster & Co. DCC Traction Engine No.14593 "Fiery Elias"Voiced by: Christopher Ragland (US), Nigel Pilkington (UK)Built: 1927
An old, cheerful traction engine. He was found in a scrap yard by Edward, and was since purchased by the Vicar. He now lives on his orchard and gives rides to children.
- Cool Old Guy: Trevor is an old engine who is kind and loves children.
- Deadpan Snarker: Downplayed but he has his good natured ribbing moments saying that Bertie was a stick in the mud, for a while.
- Demoted to Extra: He hasn't done much since season 3. And despite surviving the transition to CGI, he often makes non-speaking cameos in the background. Even after being properly reintroduced and gaining a voice actor, most of his appearances are rather brief.
- Divergent Character Evolution: His original face is modelled after Thomas, but moulded differently after his initial season. It also lacked proper eye mechanisms until Season Three, instead having painted ones.
- Flanderization: Trevor went over the Michael Angelis seasons from the cheerful Cool Old Guy Nice Guy to a Butt-Monkey who's role in the plot is to have his goods ran over by a speeding engine, such as Donald in "Twin Trouble", and Gordon in "Best Dressed Engine".
- Friend to All Children: He is very fond of children and likes to give rides to them. H even states in his quote that he likes them.
- Hates Being Alone: Trevor is unhappy whenever he doesn't have company.
- Intergenerational Friendship: With Thomas.
- Nice Guy: Almost ridiculously so, Trevor is incredibly cheerful, kind and benevolent, and gets along well with nearly everyone.
- Single Tear: Trevor cries a single tear in "Thomas and Trevor" when he has to leave the harbor after a hard day's work.
- Sleepy Head: He enjoys dozing off in the sun.
- Small Role, Big Impact: In "Seeing is Believing", he gets a new whistle sound. Percy ends up thinking that the whistle sound belongs to the "invisible engine" (Merlin) and believes that he has seen him once and for all, and the episode ends on that note without Percy discovering that Merlin was the invisible engine in question.
Caroline
- " I shouldn't be treated like this! This pace is too hot for my system; it'll fuse all my circuits!"Basis: 1926 Morris Oxford Bullnose CabrioletBuilt: 1926
An old-fashioned car owned by a cricketer. She prefers slow and leisurely runs throughout the countryside, as high speeds overheat her engine.
- The Alleged Car: She's pushed to the point of overheating frequently.
- Alliterative Name: Caroline the Car.
- American Accents: She has a Dixie accent in the US narration.
- Ascended Extra: Has slightly bigger roles in the TV series than in the books.
- Butt-Monkey: Caroline can't seem to catch a break. She overheats frequently and even breaks down in "Lady Hatt's Birthday Party". On top of that, she's also bullied by George in the aforementioned episode.
- Chuck Cunningham Syndrome: Never made it to the CGI switchover.
- Demoted to Extra: After a brief appearance in the fifth season, she was relegated to the background for the rest of the model era.
- Nice Girl: She is very calm in nature and appreciates the engines.
- Non-Standard Character Design: Caroline looks highly unusual for a character on the show. Her eyes are on her headlights, for instance.
- Southern Belle: Given a Dixie accent in the American dub and is very polite to her driver.
Bulgy
- "Bah! enjoyment is all you engines live for. One day railways will be ripped up!"Basis: AEC BridgemasterVoiced by: Colin McFarlaneBuilt: 1960/61
A double-decker bus who believed railways needed to be ripped up and replaced with roads. Ended up getting wedged under a bridge after stealing Duck's passengers and was left in a field to rot as a henhouse.
- Adaptational Heroism: While his role in the books is adapted loyally, he undergoes a brief Heel–Face Turn in "Bulgy Rides Again".
- Adaptational Nice Guy: The Story Library adaptation of his book has him willingly retire from being a bus and actually enjoy being a henhouse, even befriending the chickens.
- Alliterative Name: Bulgy the Bus.
- All There in the Manual: Various merchandise of Bulgy claims him and Devious Diesel to be friends.
- The Bus Came Back: A literal example. After Season 7, Bulgy was relegated to cameos, and was last seen in Season 12's "Excellent Emily". He returns in Season 21's "Unscheduled Stops", sent by Sir Topham Hatt to help Thomas with Bertie's passengers while Bertie has his engine repaired.
- The Cameo: He gets a few background appearances between his major roles in seasons 4 and 7.
- Character Catchphrase: "Down with railways!"
- Fantastic Racism: He was outright racist towards anything on rails in his debut.
- Foil: To Bertie. While Bertie sometimes cracks jokes about the railway and has a slight rivalry with Thomas, he is still good friends with the engines and doesn't want the railway to be ripped up. Bulgy, however, he is mean to the engines and desires for their rails to be turned into roads.
- Good Costume Switch: In his brief Heel–Face Turn in "Bulgy Rides Again", he is painted green.
- Hates Everyone Equally: Duck tries to reason with him by mentioning Bertie, but Bulgy thinks Bertie's too small to be useful.
- Heel–Face Revolving Door: In "Bulgy Rides Again", Bulgy undergoes a Heel–Face Turn when he becomes a vegetable bus. Come "Unscheduled Stops", he's not only back to his old livery, but his old anti-rail ways as well. Despite Sir Topham Hatt making it very clear that he will turn Bulgy back into a hen house if he starts his anti-rail talk again in the same episode, Bulgy's anti-rail ways are in full swing in "Free the Roads", wherein he does anything he can to convince the passengers that roads are better than rails.
- Hoist by His Own Petard: He tried to beat Duck in a race by taking a shortcut — which involved him trying to drive under a bridge. The bridge isn't high enough, and he gets stuck underneath.
- Jerkass: Bulgy is incredibly rude, cold-hearted, and discriminatory.
- Laser-Guided Karma:
- In his debut episode, Bulgy gets stuck under a bridge. Then he starts telling lies again and is turned into a henhouse.
- In "Free the Roads", Bulgy causes a bag of soil to contaminate the water inside a water tower. While the contamination was an accident, he deliberately says nothing of it for his plan to get people to travel by bus instead of train to succeed. When Bertie breaks down, Bulgy tries to take both Bertie's passengers as well as his own, and ends up breaking an axle. As an extra insult, due to Butch having to take Bertie to the garage to be repaired, he is taken to the garage by train, a very amused Thomas in fact.
- Manipulative Bastard: He's clever and devious as he is rude. He gets a fake "Railway Bus" banner to steal Duck's passengers and doesn't accept their return tickets. His plan was to make the passengers think railway services were no good, but they quickly catch on.
- Not-So-Harmless Villain: He's usually little more than a trouble making bigot, though in "Free the Roads" he uses an accident involving a water tower to his advantage and actually does set the railway back for a while. This ends up working a little too well for Bulgy however, since having to carry all the engine's passengers causes him to break down and get exposed.
- Planes, Trains, and Imbeciles: Bulgy invokes this trope, as he hates the railways. In his debut episode, he has a big "Railway Bus" placard placed on his side and then refuses to accept passengers' return tickets in order to make the railway look bad. It comes back to bite him when he gets stuck under a railway bridge; the trains take his passengers off his hands, and he ends up in a field, turned into a henhouse. Even after he is repaired in "Bulgy Rides Again", he still tends to cause this, with his first return run ruined by the passengers being harassed by chickens still inside his compartment, and another in "Free the Roads" where he overfills and breaks down as a result of taking all the railway's and Bertie's passengers (as Bertie had also overfilled and broke down).
- Pet the Dog: As self-serving as the motive was, he did offer to take Bertie's passengers in "Free the Roads".
- Perpetual Frowner: Was this in his debut, but disappeared in Bulgy Rides Again.
- Shortcuts Make Long Delays: Bulgy's shortcut winds up getting him stuck under a low bridge.
- Tautological Templar: As of "Free the Roads" he genuinely seems to believe that railway engines are evil and passengers are being forced to travel by rail against their will, no matter how many times they, the Fat Controller and even his fellow buses make clear that isn't the case.
- Took a Level in Kindness: In his debut episode, Bulgy called Bertie too small in size to be of any use. In "Free the Roads", he's a lot friendlier towards Bertie, if only because he wants to help him prove that buses are better than trains. He even offers to take Bertie's passengers when Bertie breaks down.
- Vanity License Plate: In "Free the Roads", he gains a license plate that says, "BLG1".
George
- "Railways are no good, turn 'em into roads. Pull 'em up, turn 'em into roads."Basis: Aveling-Barford R Class steam roadrollerBuilt: 1920/29
A steam roller who finds great joy in turning rails into roads.
- Adaptational Jerkass: George in the books is more rude than anything else with many empty threats, where his potential wrong-doings are left up in the air. His TV counterpart is a more genuine troublemaker, with a scenario from his debut story left ambiguous in the book firmly placing him as the culprit here, and he later goes on to pave over a level crossing and hold up Duck knowing full well of the accidents that will result.
- Berserk Button: Ignoring him or besting him in an argument.
- Brooklyn Rage: Both George Carlin and Alec Baldwin give him a Brooklyn accent in the US dub, to match tough-guy attitude.
- The Bully: He has this attitude with the engines.
- Chuck Cunningham Syndrome: Has not appeared after "The Great Discovery" after making multiple background appearances.
- Drives Like Crazy: Sir Handel accuses him of this, though it's never made clear whether Sir Handel or George himself caused their infamous accident.
- Evil Minions: George was supposed to be one of Diesel 10's minions in Thomas and the Magic Railroad, helping him smash all the buffers in the Sodor, but was dropped. It would even come with a surprising Everyone Has Standards moment for George, as he starts to regret the alliance when he realises Diesel 10 means real harm.
- Fantastic Racism: "Railways are no good! Turn 'em into roads!"
- Foil: To Buster, Sodor's other steamroller. While Buster respects the engines and is a nice guy to be around, George can't stand them and is unpleasant.
- For the Evulz: He hates railways for no good reason and he isn’t even given a Freudian Excuse.
- Green and Mean: He has green paint and is a huge jerk.
- Jerkass: George is mean to the engines, and, like Bulgy, desires to see railways ripped up and turned into roads.
- Laser-Guided Karma:
- In "Lady Hatt's Birthday Party", George malfunctions and crashes into a pond after insulting Caroline for breaking down.
- In "Bye George!", for causing Thomas to derail, and refusing to move to allow Duck to clear the line for Gordon and the Express, leading to one of Duck's trucks being destroyed, The Fat Controller gave George a stern talking to and sent him to the timber mill to learn some manners, having his rollers be used as machinery for the mill, and not paving roads like he enjoyed, which made George miserable.
- Never My Fault: In "Steam Roller", he argues with Sir Handel over who caused the accident.
Bulstrode
- "I'm sinking!"Basis: 1920s self-propelled coastal barge
A highly disagreeable barge. He was later converted to a children’s playground.
- Advertised Extra: Despite only having one major appearance in the TV series, he is frequently featured in Brendam Docks merchandise, usually alongside Cranky the Crane.
- Alliterative Name: Bulstrode the Barge.
- Asshole Victim: In "Special Attraction", where he gets sunk and later converted to a playground because of his rudeness.
- Hated by All: Bulstrode isn’t very well-liked due to his rude attitude. Even the Troublesome Trucks dislike him.
- Jerkass: Bulstrode is grumpy and disagreeable.
- Laser-Guided Karma: For constantly complaining, he was sunk by the troublesome trucks. They even said that it served him right.
- One-Shot Character: He only appeared in "Special Attraction".
- Perpetual Frowner: Bulstrode's default facial expression is a scowl.
Horrid Lorries
- Bases: Foden OG lorries
Three lorries (that’s British slang for truck) who arrive on the island after the Fat Controller decided the engines needed some help.
- Drives Like Crazy: Two out of three are done in by reckless driving. Lorry 1 reverses into the sea at the harbour, and Lorry 2 goes through cliffs too quickly and ends up driving right off.
- Fantastic Racism: The Lorries make rude remarks about the steam engines, calling them "Steaming Lumps of Scrap Iron" and telling Toby that he belongs in a museum instead of working at a quarry.
- Jerkass: They spend a good deal of the episode insulting the engines.
- Laser-Guided Karma: After they ended up respectively smashed, broken and sunk.
- One-Shot Character: Only appeared in their namesake episode, unless you count spin-off material, such as the comic stories and the PC games. Their models have also been recycled for non-sentient lorries in the following seasons.
- Pet the Dog: In the debatably-canon tie-in PC game "Trouble On The Tracks", one of the Lorries helps out by collecting coal from the mines when he hears that James had an accident and that none of the other engines are available to do so due to having run out of coal.
- Self-Disposing Villain: The engines don’t have to do anything to get rid of the Lorries — they wreck themselves and are hauled off the island in shame.
- Smug Snake: They are as up their own arse as Diesel, every line of dialogue is dripping with contempt for the steam engines.
- Terrible Trio: There are three lorries, and they're all antagonistic.
- We Will Meet Again: Lorry 2 vows that he'll return at the end. It's subverted when the narrator tells the audience that The Lorries never returned. It's double subverted in the comics where they actually do come back, although the canon of the comics is debatable.
Thumper
- Basis: No single model; his main body is made from a Fowler 0-4-0 Diesel shunter, while his treads are taken from a Russian KV-1 tank model, mounted backwards.
A mining machine bought to work at Boulder Quarry, but disappeared after setting a boulder loose.
- All There in the Manual: According to
The Merch, he now works exclusively at slate mines. - Ambiguous Gender: Thumper is referred to as "it" in "Rusty and the Boulder", but is referred to as male in merchandise.
- Cartoon Creature: He's not based on any real mining machine. Moreover, one like him would be impossible to operate safely.
- Chuck Cunningham Syndrome: He only appeared in "Rusty and the Boulder".
- Flat Character: Despite being a major character in the episode, he neither speaks nor expresses any emotion.
- Mellow Fellow: Thumper is described as being a "cool dude", with a laid-back attitude. But because he doesn't speak or express emotion in his episode, this is an Informed Attribute.
- The Quiet One: Never says anything.
Elizabeth
- "Oh, it's you. Have you learned to drive properly yet?"Basis: Sentinel DG4 steam lorry
A vintage steam quarry truck, who ended up being abandoned in a shed. She was the Fat Controller's first truck, and upon discovering her, he immediately had her restored.
- Chuck Cunningham Syndrome: She has not been seen since season 11.
- Deadpan Snarker: Is usually pretty sarcastic. One example is her above quote.
- Did You Just Punch Out Cthulhu?: In her debut episode, she's the only character able to insult The Fat Controller without getting into trouble.
- Fantastic Racism: Subverted. She may believe that roads are superior to rails, but she often helps the engines out when necessary.
- Jerkass Has a Point: She is right to call out Duncan for constantly whistling as it is very annoying as it is dangerous.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Even with her condescending front, she is a loyal and hard worker, and reacts appropriately to good manners. Her treatment of Thomas also softens when he and Terence help her out of the snow following a crash.
- Laser-Guided Karma: Happens to her in "Not So Hasty Puddings" when she slides into a snowdrift for making fun of Thomas.
Jeremy
- "I can go anywhere I want! Flying is the most fun in the world!"Basis: BAC One-Eleven RomBac-1 jet airliner
A jet plane who lives at the Sodor airport.
- Alliterative Name: Jeremy the Jet Plane.
- The Cameo: He made a cameo in season 20's "Letters to Santa", albeit a photoshopped version of his Trackmaster model.
- Chuck Cunningham Syndrome: Disappeared after the end of the model era.
- Fantastic Racism: Briefly towards Thomas in his debut episode, when he boasts about how great it is to be a jet plane and puts Thomas down.
- It's All About Me: Jeremy has a very inflated image of himself because of the advantages he has over steam engines.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Despite his insensitive remarks towards Thomas at the beginning of his debut episode, he makes for it by letting the children that had had their picnic ruined by the rain have their picnic in his hanger.
- Mr. Vice Guy: Arrogant, but is still willing to help out the engines when the time is right.
- Non-Standard Character Design: He has his face drawn on his cockpit, unlike the other characters.
- Not Drawn to Scale: Jeremy's model is much smaller than his real life counterpart, being closer to the scale of a bi-plane, making his passenger consumption a mystery.
- Suspiciously Similar Substitute: For Harold, both of them being prideful aircraft who look down upon the engines yet have a softer side.
Madge
- Basis: Scammell Scarab 6t lorry
A snub-nosed truck that works in the mountains near the Skarloey Railway. She acts very motherly to the narrow gauge engines, even at the risk of her own well-being.
- Chuck Cunningham Syndrome: Has not appeared since "The Great Discovery".
- Drives Like Crazy: Done deliberately in Cool Truckings, when Duncan complains her drives are slow and boring.
- Neat Freak: She doesn’t like getting mucky.
- Nice Girl: She is usually friendly and motherly to the narrow gauge engines.
- Small Role, Big Impact: Madge doesn't have a big role in The Great Discovery, but is the first character that Thomas tells about Great Waterton, which she spreads to the narrow-gauge engines, who spread it all over the Island.
- Team Mom: To the narrow gauge engines, despite the fact she's younger than many of them.
Colin
- "What a wonderful party!"
A canal-side steam crane who is stationed at the Wharf. He is good friends with Fearless Freddie.
- Alliterative Name: Colin the Crane.
- Cartoon Creature: Colin isn't based on any real steam crane. His basis is freelanced, though he superficially resembles a 100t steam crane similar to those seen at Alexander Docks in Grimsby, Lincolnshire.
- Flat Character: His only character traits are that he's a Nice Guy and that he's lonely because he can't go anywhere.
- Gag Nose: Has a long, sausage-like nose.
- Hates Being Alone: His main personality trait is that he’s lonely due to being fixed in one place, meaning that he can’t see the sights that the narrow-gauge engines get to see, or go to parties.
- Nice Guy: Colin is a good friend to all the narrow-gauge engines.
- One-Shot Character: Colin only appeared in "The Party Surprise".
Owen and Merrick
- "Next stop — you're too heavy!" -Owen"I think it's my nap time..." -MerrickBasis: Dinorwic Slate Quarry stationary incline traction engine (Owen)Voiced by: Ben Small (Owen), Matt Wilkinson (Merrick)
A pair of machines working at the Blue Mountain Quarry. Merrick is a crane with a set of rails, letting him move back and forth. Owen is a steam-powered incline, raising and lowering trucks up and down his platform. They debuted in Blue Mountain Mystery.
- The Big Guy: Owen, who is easily the biggest and strongest machine working at the BMQ.
- Cartoon Creature: Like Colin, Merrick's basis is not known, though he takes inspiration from several American rolling gantry cranes.
- Demoted to Extra: After Blue Mountain Mystery, they haven't been seen in many episodes. Whenever they do appear, it's usually non-speaking cameos.
- Gentle Giant: Both of them are this. They are both very large machines, but are also kind and helpful to the engines.
- Mad Libs Catchphrase: Owen's is "Next stop," followed by a location.
- No Indoor Voice: Merrick, when he's awake.
- Sleepy Head: Merrick tends to nod off if he's not busy with something. This became less prominent after Blue Mountain Mystery.
- Those Two Guys: Being two machines who are unable to leave the Blue Mountain Quarry, they tend to be this.
The Pack
- Bases:Jack: Nuffield Front Loader Tractor (Seasons 6-12), International 454 Front Loader Tractor (Seasons 13-onward)Max & Monty: 1949 Scammell Mountaineer dump truckBrenda: Caterpillar D9H BulldozerDarcy: Roadheader EBZ-200 tunnel borerKelly: Austin K6 Crane LorryNed: Erie Type B Steam ShovelByron: 1930s Caterpillar BulldozerIsobella: Sentinel DG4 steam lorryPatrick: 1943 Mack NM 6-ton 6x6 truckBuster: Aveling & Porter R10 steam road rollerNelson: Scammell 15LA ballast tractorJack voices: David Menkin (US), Steven Kynman (UK)Alfie voices: Nathan Clarke (2015-2016), Tom Stourton (2019-present)Oliver voices: Tim WhitnallMax voices: Kerry Shale (US), Tim Whitnall (UK)Monty voices: Rob Rackstraw (US), Rasmus Hardiker (UK)Brenda voices: Teresa GallagherDarcy voices: Harriet Kershaw
A team of construction vehicles owned by Miss Jenny Packard. They are in charge of construction projects on Sodor. Members include Nelson the ballast tractor, Jack the front loader, Alfie and Oliver the excavators, Max and Monty the dump trucks, Kelly the crane, Byron the bulldozer, Ned the steam shovel, Isobella the steam lorry, Patrick the cement mixer, and Buster the steamroller. Season 23 introduced Brenda the Bulldozer and Darcy the Digger.
- A Day in the Limelight: They all had episodes about them. Jack in "Jack Jumps In", "A Friend In Need", and "Jack Owns Up", Oliver in "A Visit from Thomas" and "Thomas' Trusty Friends", Alfie in "Percy's Scary Tale" and "Alfie Has Kittens", Patrick in "On Site With Thomas", Isobella in "Mud Glorious Mud", Ned in "Jack Owns Up" and "Thomas' Trusty Friends", Byron in "A Happy Day for Percy", Kelly in "Kelly's Windy Day", Nelson in "Percy Helps Out", Buster in "Thomas and the Moles" and "The Tortoise and the Hare", Max and Monty in "Mucking About", Brenda in "Out Of Site", and Darcy in "First Day On Sodor!"
- Aesop Amnesia: No matter how many times they are scolded, Max and Monty never learn their lesson.
- Affirmative Action Girl: Brenda and Darcy were added to the team in season 23 so there can be more female members.
- Alliterative Name: Byron the Bulldozer (and as of Season 23, Brenda the Bulldozer and Darcy the Digger), and Kelly the Crane (same sound).
- American Accents: Kelly has a Texan accent in the US dub.
- Bully Hunter: Jack is this whenever Max and Monty try to pick on Alfie.
- The Bus Came Back: A good portion of the team reappears in The Great Discovery, and Jack and Alfie appear in one episode of season 12. After the change to CGI, Jack returned in King of the Railway, while Alfie, Oliver, Max and Monty returned in Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure.
- Cool Old Guy: Kelly and Oliver, who are both old, but are wise, hard-workers.
- Cool Shades: When she's on duty and digging tunnels, Darcy wears goggles.
- Drill Tank: Darcy is a roadheader, meaning she's based on a real-life one of these.
- Easily Forgiven: Max and Monty's antics would get them instantly fired from any work site. Some of them would even result in fines or criminal charges (Illegal Dumping in "Mucking About", for example). Instead they're just given a stern lecture and sent to clean up the mess they made.
- Expy:
- Alfie is very similar to Percy. They are both small, green, cheeky, kind-hearted, and hard-working. This is even lampshades in "Percy's Scary Tale".
- Brenda is somewhat similar to Byron, as both are hard-working bulldozers.
- Face Your Fears: Kelly does this in "Kelly's Windy Day", where he braves the wind and fear of being blown over in order to save Isobella.
- Gender-Blender Name: Kelly is a boy, but his name is usually used for girls.
- Gentle Giant: Ned, who is large but very kind.
- Grenade Hot Potato: Jack, Alfie, Oliver the excavator and Marion do this with a lit box of dynamite in Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure. Though nobody gets hurt.
- Height Angst: Alfie had this in "Alfie Has Kittens".
- It's All About Me: Patrick has this mentality, since he thinks he's the most important machine of the Pack and is very prideful.
- Jerkass: Max and Monty, who like to bully the other machines for fun.
- The Klutz: Ned is very clumsy.
- The Leader: Although Jack is the title character of their miniseries, Kelly is technically the leader of the Pack.
- Neat Freak:
- Isobella doesn't like getting dirty.
- Brenda likes to keep her grounds flat and free of anything messy, and tries to keep the other members of the Pack away from them. Unfortunately, this makes it harder for them to complete their jobs.
- Nice Guy: Jack, Alfie, Oliver, Kelly, Ned, and Buster.
- Not Me This Time: In "Out Of Site", Brenda accuses Max and Monty of dumping stone all over her flat ground, but it wasn't them, it was actually Jack, Alfie and Oliver, and they did it because it was their job.
- One-Shot Character: Patrick, who only appeared in "On Site With Thomas".
- One-Steve Limit: Oliver shares the same name as the Great Western engine. This was played for laughs in "Sodor's Legend of the Lost Treasure" when Marion thinks he (the engine) turned into a digger, only to find out at the end that there are two Olivers.
- The Perfectionist: Brenda, who always likes her grounds to be flat and free of even the smallest pebble.
- Put on a Bus: Though they had an entire mini-series dedicated to them, they quickly disappeared when Thomas & Friends was acquired by HiT.
- Rookie Red Ranger: Jack. It also helps that his color is red.
- Sibling Rivalry: Max and Monty are always fighting.
- Simpleton Voice: Ned has this kind of voice.
- The Smurfette Principle: Prior to the CGi transition, Isobella was the only female vehicle in the Pack. In Season 23, Brenda and Darcy were added to the Pack.
- Spotlight-Stealing Squad: In the Pack's miniseries, Max and Monty took up most of the screen time and were the primary sources of many of the episodes' conflicts. This is despite the fact that they didn't have a proper episode to themselves in the miniseries (unless you count "The Tortoise and the Hare" and even then that was more of a Buster story). It wouldn't be until season 20's "Mucking About" that they would get their own spotlight episode.
- This Is a Drill: Darcy is a machine with a long drilling arm.
- Toxic Friend Influence: Max and Monty to Thomas in "Mucking About". Thomas had deemed the two reckless and decided not to do races with them anymore.
- Theme Twin Naming: Max and Monty.
- Youthful Freckles: Alfie has very faint ones, most noticeable in close-up shots.
Reg
- "Reg is the name! I'm the scrapyard crane!"Voiced by: Tim Whitnall
A rail-based grappling crane that works at the scrap yard.
- A Day in the Limelight: Reg has the most focus in “The Perfect Gift”, and in “P.A. Problems”.
- Aesop Enforcer: In “School of Duck”, where he promotes the recycling moral.
- Big Ol' Eyebrows: Reg has very large eyebrows.
- Cartoon Creature: Reg’s basis is a hybrid design, according to Sam Wilkinson.
- Cloudcuckoolander: Reg can be very strange at times, especially due to him finding beauty in scrap. This is showcased in “The Truth About Toby” and “P.A. Problems”, in the latter episode which he keeps singing.
- Deadpan Snarker: Can be sarcastic at times.
- Demoted to Extra: Reg was a somewhat relevant character in Tale of the Brave, but after that movie, he was relegated to just a few appearances per season, making him one of the most obscure CGI characters.
- Dreadful Musician: As shown in “P.A. Problems”, the workmen at the scrap yards don’t think his singing is very good.
- One Man's Trash Is Another's Treasure: Reg is able to the good in things that have been neglected, much to the confusion of the other engines. This is best shown in “The Perfect Gift”.
- Unwitting Instigator of Doom: He created the scrap monster that James used in "Tale of the Brave" to scare Percy off, which makes him first to run away with Gator, then later go off to the danger section at the Clay Pits to find Thomas' monster.
- Vocal Evolution: His voice was low during his first couple of appeerances, but by season 19 his voice became higher.
Skiff
- Voiced by: Jamie Campbell BowerBasis: Eastport Pram with added railway chassis.
A fun-loving little boat owned by Sailor John. He has a special chassis that allows him to be used on rails. After being fed up with Sailor John's lies and abuse, he sabotages his effort to steal the lost treasure, and now gives railboat tours around Arlesburgh Harbor.
- A Day in the Limelight: In "Blown Away" and "Skiff and the Mermaid".
- Agent Mulder: As shown in "Skiff and the Mermaid", he believes that mermaids are real.
- Cartoon Creature: While he is based on the Eastport Pram, he also has a chassis, which it lacks in real life, though his inspiration was taken from "Spooner's Boat", a novelty rail vehicle found on the real-life Ffestiniog Railway.
- The Dog Bites Back: He deliberately capsizes, forcing Sailor John to lose the treasure.
- Extreme Doormat: He's all too happy to brush off Sailor John's abusive behavior. Eventually gets sick of it and turns on him.
- Friend to All Children: He wants to spend more time on the rails, so he can one day get to give children rides. He gets his wish.
- Good Costume Switch: After joining Sodor, his woodworkings get painted blue.
- Heroic Sacrifice: He tries to invoke this during the climax, telling him it'd be okay if Thomas smashed him if it meant stopping Sailor John. And when they reach water, he deliberately takes on water and capsizes. Luckily, he survives.
- Horrible Judge of Character: Despite Sailor John constantly abusing him, Skiff genuinely thought of him as his friend. Luckily, Skiff saw Sailor John's true colors and promptly abandoned him.
- Ignorant Minion: Sailor John had told Skiff that he plans on donating the treasure to the museum once they find it. Realizing that Sailor John had been lying to him the whole time is what spurs Skiff to rebel against him.
- Keet: Skiff is always upbeat and excitable.
- Mistreatment-Induced Betrayal: Oh yeah, big time in the end
- Nice Guy: Skiff has a positive attitude and sees the good in everyone.
Ace
- Voiced by: Peter AndreNumber: 43Basis: Ferrari 275 GTB/4
A rally car from Australia who inspires Thomas to travel the world.
- Always Someone Better: Thomas sees him as this due to his more sleek and modern appearance.
- Artistic License – Physics: At the start of Big World! Big Adventures!, he somehow manages to drive on the side of the Vicarstown Bridge to avoid crashing into Sidney.
- Awesome Aussie: Ace is portrayed as being this at first, but it's subverted in that he's actually frightened of wild animals.
- Big Bad: Of Big World! Big Adventures!, being a major Toxic Friend Influence to Thomas.
- Cartoon Creature: He's rougly a Triumph Spitfire 1500, albeit one with a ton of modifications.
- "I Am Great!" Song: "Free and Easy", as he shares how much he enjoys racing whenever he wants to.
- It's All About Me: The only person that Ace cares about is himself.
- Non-Standard Character Design: Even ignoring how different he is from his assumed basis, his face is not a perfect geometric shape (though it's possible one of his modifications is a grill in that shape, meaning his face would be justified for following the logic other road characters use for their face shapes) and he is far bouncier than the rest of the cast.
- Reckless Sidekick: To Thomas, encouraging him to do reckless things at the expense of Nia.
- Thrill Seeker: Ace is very reckless, and loves driving dangerously for the excitement.
- Toxic Friend Influence: He encourages Thomas to do his own stuff, and tricks Thomas into running away from Nia.
- What Happened to the Mouse?: In the movie, Ace ditches Thomas at the Bonneville Salt Flats, and isn’t seen until the end, where he’s on a boat with Sir Topham Hatt. What exactly happened to Ace is unknown.
- Why Did It Have to Be Snakes?: He's actually very scared of wild animals.
Emerson
- Voiced by: Gabriel PorrasBasis: Beechcraft King Air B200
A twin-engined plane from Brazil.
- All There in the Script: His name is not mentioned in Big World! Big Adventures!, but was revealed via a voice cast listing.
- Palette Swap: He and Isla are the same basis, but with different colour schemes.
Isla
- Voiced by: Rachael Louise MillerBasis: Beechcraft King Air B200
A twin-engine plane from Australia who debuts in Season 22.
- Action Girl: She’s a plane who carries people in remote locations to hospitals and doctors.
- Always Someone Better: Downplayed. While in "Cyclone Thomas" her ability to fly makes her able to always stay ahead of Thomas and be the hero, much to Thomas' dismay, at the end of the episode she is grounded by the titular cyclone and counts on Thomas to finish her delivery.
- Big Damn Heroes: In “Cyclone Thomas”, where she gets to save the day multiple times.
- Humble Hero: Isla doesn't boast about her accomplishments, saying that it's nothing.
- Palette Swap: Of Emerson, due to similar appearance except for their colour.
- Shout-Out: Her job as a flying doctor is one to Australia's real-life Royal Flying Doctor Service.
- The Smurfette Principle: The first female aircraft character.
- Tertiary Sexual Characteristics: She has eyelashes and lips, like the other female characters.
Cleo
- Voiced by: Harriet Kershaw
A Road Engine that debuted in Season 24. She was designed and built by Ruth.
- Automated Automobiles: She's shown in both of her episodes to be capable of driving herself, even wrestling control away from Ruth.
- Cartoon Creature: Unlike most other characters, even the ones with hybrid and freelance bases, Cleo is a completely fictional design with no specific basis or inspiration, though her appearance is reminiscent of early-20th century front-engine racing cars and runabouts. This is understandable, given that even In-Universe she is a custom design built by Ruth out of locomotive parts.
- Cool Car: Ruth's personal vehicle after retiring the hovercars, and not only can travel fast on both road and rail, but also can separate herself from her wheels and rotate her frame on the spot, allowing her to change direction without losing speed.
- Drives Like Crazy: She's like this on her first day out, wrestling control away from Ruth so that she can race Thomas on the branch line. She gets better after narrowly avoiding an accident with Gordon.
- Genki Girl: She is shown to be very excitable and energetic in her debut episode, especially when racing Thomas.
- Hammerspace: The piston she uses to raise and rotate her chassis is smack in the middle of her body where major drivetrain components ought to be.
- Really Was Born Yesterday: More like really was built yesterday. Her debut is her being newly invented by Ruth, still making her young and naive compared to everyone else.
- Tertiary Sexual Characteristics: Has thick eyelashes and lips.
