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Anopen wagon (ortruck in the UK) forms a large group of railwaygoods wagons designed primarily for the transportation ofbulk goods that are not moisture-retentive and can usually be tipped, dumped or shovelled. TheInternational Union of Railways (UIC) distinguishes betweenordinary wagons (ClassE/UIC-type5) andspecial wagons (F/6).[1][2] Open wagons often form a significant part of a railway company's goods wagon fleet; for example, forming just under 40% of theDeutsche Bahn's total goods wagon stock in Germany.
Since the 1960s, the majority of goods wagons procured by European railway administrations have been built to standards laid down by, or based on, those established by the UIC. In addition to open wagons the table also showswagons with opening roofs (Class T), whose design is based on open wagons.
| Norm | UIC 571-1: Ordinary class two axles | UIC 571-2: Ordinary class four axles | UIC 571-3: Special class | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Class | Type 1 "French" | Type 2 "German" | Wagon with sliding roof four axles | Hopper wagon two axles | Saddle-bottomed wagon four axles | |||
| without roof | with roof | without roof | with roof | |||||
| Class | Es | Ea(o)s | Taems to 1979: Taes | Fcs | Tds | Fals | Tals | |
| Axle base | 4.85 m (15 ft 11 in) | 5.40 m (17 ft8+5⁄8 in) | − | 6.00 m (19 ft8+1⁄4 in) | − | |||
| Bogie pivot pitch | − | 9.00 m (29 ft6+3⁄8 in) | − | 7.50 m (24 ft7+1⁄4 in) | ||||
| Length over buffers | 9.04 m (29 ft7+7⁄8 in) | 10.00 m (32 ft9+3⁄4 in) | 14.04 m (46 ft3⁄4 in) | 9.64 m (31 ft7+1⁄2 in) | 12.54 m (41 ft1+3⁄4 in) | |||
| Loading length, min. | 7.79 m (25 ft6+3⁄4 in) | 8.76 m (28 ft8+7⁄8 in) | 12.71 m (41 ft8+3⁄8 in) | 12.40 m (40 ft8+1⁄4 in) | − | − | ||
| Loading area, ca. | 22 m2 (240 sq ft) | 24 m2 (260 sq ft) | 35 m2 (380 sq ft) | 33 m2 (360 sq ft) | − | − | ||
| Loading volume, ca. | 36 m3 (1,300 cu ft) | 36 m3 (1,300 cu ft) | 71 m3 (2,500 cu ft) | 74 m3 (2,600 cu ft) | 40 m3 (1,400 cu ft) | 38 m3 (1,300 cu ft) | 75 m3 (2,600 cu ft) | 72 m3 (2,500 cu ft) |
| Unladen weight, max. | ... | 12.5 t (12.3 long tons; 13.8 short tons) | 22.0 t (21.7 long tons; 24.3 short tons) | 24.0 t (23.6 long tons; 26.5 short tons) | 13.0 t (12.8 long tons; 14.3 short tons) | 13.5 t (13.3 long tons; 14.9 short tons) | 15.0 t (14.8 long tons; 16.5 short tons) | 15.5 t (15.3 long tons; 17.1 short tons) |
| Doors per side | 2 | 1 | 2 | 1 | − | − | ||
| Door width | ... | 1.80 m (5 ft10+7⁄8 in) | 1.80 m (5 ft10+7⁄8 in) | 4.00 m (13 ft1+1⁄2 in) | − | − | ||
These wagons have a level floor and solid sides with at least one door on each side. They are mainly used for transporting bulk goods,coal,scrap,steel,wood andpaper. The majority of wagons have folding sides and end walls, otherwise they are given the lettersl (fixed sides) oro (fixed end walls). Wagons may have one or two folding end walls. Steel rings enable ropes, nets or covers to be attached to secure the load.
Some of these wagons can also be completely tipped over, in other words, at certain places they can be lifted up and emptied by being turned about their longitudinal axis. This requires a very robust underframe. Sometimes the wagons are fitted with rotatable couplings so that they do not have to be individually uncoupled.
In 1998, the Deutsche Bahn (DB) had about 16,000 four-axle Class E wagons. They have increasingly retired their twin-axled E wagons since the 1990s and they are now rarely seen.
The majority of these areself-discharging wagons which usegravity-unloading (hopper cars and saddle-bottomed wagons), but in addition there are also:
In addition to hopper and saddle-bottomed wagons there were alsowagons with opening roofs.[citation needed]
Typical loads for these wagons are all sorts of bulk goods, like coal, coke, ore, sand or gravel. Because bulk goods are often moved in large quantities, these wagons are frequently used in so-calledunit or block trains that only comprise one type of wagon and only shift one type of product from the dispatcher to the recipient.
Hopper wagons can only be unloaded by gravity with no external assistance and are therefore also classed as self-discharging wagons. The majority may be filled, when at rail or road level, by high-level discharge chutes (whose ends are more than 70 cm above the top of the rails) orconveyor belts. Because a controlled amount of the load can be discharged at any place the wagons may be sent anywhere and are even used individually. Railway companies also use hoppers asdepartmental wagons inmaintenance of way trains for ballasting the track.
Since the 1990s there has been a trend for new hopper wagons to be built as bogie wagons which have not yet been standardized by the UIC.
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Saddle-bottomed wagons are large-volume hoppers are exclusively unloaded by gravity and are therefore classed as self-discharging hoppers. Unlike normal hopper wagons, however, their discharge cannot be controlled and the entire load must be dropped. To unload the flaps on the side swing out allowing the load to empty. This is aided by the floor which slopes downwards on both sides like agable roof. The discharging chutes on either side are relatively high up. These wagons are frequently seen inunit trains for transporting bulk goods such as coal or mineralore from mines or ports tosteelworks orpower stations.
The most modern type of four axle saddle-bottomed wagon in the DB is the four axle Falns 121 with a loading volume of 90 m3 (120 cu yd). It was built from 1992 in several batches. By February 2008 another 100 of these wagons were to have been delivered to the DB and another 300 by 2010. These latest wagons will have anaxle load of 23.5 t (23.1 long tons; 25.9 short tons) and anunladen weight of no more than 24.5 t (24.1 long tons; 27.0 short tons), resulting in a load limit of 69.5 t (68.4 long tons; 76.6 short tons).
Side-tipping wagons havehydraulic,pneumatic orelectric tipping equipment, that enables the wagon body to be lifted on one side. Depending on the design, they may be tipped to both sides or just one side only. In order to prevent wagons from falling over during the tipping operation, some are equipped with track pinch bars with which they can be securely anchored to the trackbed. These wagons are often seen in unit trains being used to remove excavated material from major construction sites.
Alorry ormine car is an open railroad car (gondola) with a tipping trough, used inmining. It is known in the UK as atippler orchaldron wagon,[3] and in the US as amine car.[4]
The first railway bulk-cargo gondolas, the first freight wagons, were the chaldron cars of the early coal-carryingplateways. These were relatively short in length and tall in proportion, with a tapered body that widened upwards, above the wheels. Once locomotive haulage began, the unstable and top-heavy nature of this design became a problem with increasing speeds and later wagons became lower and longer.
Modalohrs are specializedwagons for carryingroad trailers androad tractors on theAFF route fromFrance toItaly andLuxembourg toSpain and vice versa; there are plans to expand this service.[5] A deck between thebogies (trucks)pivots (swings) 30°, allowing the trailers to be loaded from the sides. The cars are built byLohr Industrie.
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