CDA wagon

Last updated

CDA wagon
Railway Station, Lostwithiel - geograph.org.uk - 2171486.jpg
A Class 37 hauling a rake of CDA wagons at Lostwithiel
Manufacturer BREL
RFS
Order no.Lot 4062
Built atDoncaster
ReplacedUCV/OOV clay hoods
Constructed1987–1988, 1989
Entered service1988–2023
Refurbished1999-2000
Number built139
(124 new, 15 converted HAA) [1]
Number preserved12
Design codeCDA
Fleet numbers353224, 375000–375137
Capacity31.5 tonnes (34.7 tons)
(tare 15.45 tonnes (17.03 tons))
Specifications
Car length9,042 millimetres (356 in)
Width2,686 millimetres (106 in)
Height3,600 millimetres (142 in)
Maximum speed45 miles per hour (72 km/h) laden
60 miles per hour (97 km/h) empty [2]
Track gauge 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm)

The CDA wagon was a type of hopper railway wagon used by British Rail, and then the privatised railway, to move china clay (kaolin) in South West England. The CDA was based on the same design as the HAA wagons which were used to transport coal, with the prototype CDA being a conversion of the HAA type. The wagons were used for 35 years being introduced in 1988, and withdrawn from use in 2023. Twelve examples of the type have been preserved.

Contents

History

China clay traffic concentrated at Fowey Docks in the South West of England was previously carried in vacuum-braked wagons coded UCV, or OOV, under TOPS. [3] [4] These wagons were built in the 1950s and could only carry a payload of 13 tonnes (14 tons), so by the 1980s, there was a desire to replace them with newer wagons which could carry a greater payload. [5] HAA coal hopper number 351297 was tested at Fowey in 1986. [6] The first wagon to be converted in 1986 was another HAA hopper, number 353224, originally built at Shildon in 1968. [7] Initially it was coded as CBA, and was not recoded to CDA until full production of the new wagons had started. [8] The success of the trial, prompted a batch of 124 wagons to be built between 1987 and 1988 at BREL Doncaster. A further 14 HAA wagons were converted by RFS Doncaster in 1989. [9] One difference from the HAA design was that the CDAs had a roll-top canvas hood to protect the clay from the elements. [10] The CDAs were 9,042 millimetres (356 in) in length (buffer to buffer), 2,686 millimetres (106 in) at their widest, and 3,600 millimetres (142 in) in height from rail to the top of the wagon. [2] [note 1] One CDA wagon could carry almost three times the payload of the UCV/OOV wagon that it replaced. [13]

The wagons were used exclusively within Cornwall and Devon, but when the last Devon flow of china clay from Marsh Mills ceased in 2008, they only saw use within Cornwall. [14] [note 2] The only time they left the south-west was to go to York Clifton Depot in the late 1980s to have modifications undertaken on their interior wagon coating. [16] A mid-life refurbishment was undertaken by EWS between 1999 and 2000 at Pontsmill, a branch in the St Blazey area. Some of the wagons emerged with new canvasses in a maroon colour, the EWS in-house livery style. [16]

The loaded CDAs were taken to Carne Point, part of the docks at Fowey. [17] Previously, the OOV vacuum-braked wagons had been unloaded there with their sideways-facing doors, but the CDAs, had six doors in the floor of the wagon, and so the unloading point was adapted to the new operation, coming on stream in January 1988. [18] Whilst the wagon doors needed to be opened manually, an automatic hydraulic actuator closed them as they moved away from the unloading shed. [19] [20]

A CDA at St Blazey CDA 375102 at St Blazey.JPG
A CDA at St Blazey

The three letter code given to the wagons on TOPS (CDA) meant that they were designated as a bulk carrying wagon for clay, and air-braked. [21] [10] With the rationalisation of loading points and a downturn in traffic (peak loadings at Fowey reach almost 847,000 tonnes (934,000 tons) in 1998), the wagon fleet was less utilised and so by 2014, DB Cargo were only using a pool of 82 wagons. [22] These were marshalled into two rakes of 38, with four spares, and two left at Carne Point as 'reach wagons'. [23] The 'reach wagons' were used to propel the final loaded CDAs into the shed as locomotives are not allowed inside the unloader. [14]

By the 2020s, DB Cargo stated that the wagons were life-expired and beyond economic repair. [24] The last loaded working of the CDA wagons was on 11 August 2023, running loaded from Treviscoe to Fowey Docks, then after unloading, running empty to St Blazey Yard. [25] The prototype CDA and the all the HAA converted wagons were store out of use by 2004, and since then, withdrawals have continued and most of the CDAs have been cut up for scrap at St Blazey Yard. Only three remained outside preservation until September 2024, these being the three HAA conversions at Fowey used as barriers until the withdrawal of CDAs in 2023.(375125, 375135, 375137). [26] As of September 2024 the three HAA conversions were scrapped on site at Fowey Carne Point.[ citation needed ] The china clay workings in Cornwall are now using JIA wagons (ex limestone JGA hoppers were trialled but not a success). [27]

Preservation

The CDA prototype converted from a HAA hopper and numbered 353224, was saved for preservation in 2016. The National Wagon Preservation Group (NWPG), ran a crowdfunding campaign and raised the required funds to save the wagon, and it is located at the Chasewater Railway. [28] [29] The only other wagon that was preserved whilst the fleet were still in service was number 375088, which is stored at the Barry Tourist Railway. [29] In December 2023, nine of the wagons were taken from St Blazey to Par Harbour, where eight were removed by road to the Bodmin and Wenford Railway, while the ninth was taken to the Plym Valley Railway. Another example remained at St.Blazey having been purchased by Mpower, this being 375102, the last of the type to be unloaded at Fowey. [30]

Preserved CDAs:

375030 - 375030 Preservation Group, Plym Valley Railway

375050, 375061, 375063, 375067, 375090, 375091, 375113, 375117 - National Wagon Preservation Group, Bodmin Railway

375088 - Barry Tourist Railway

375102 - Mpower Kernow, St Blazey Depot

353224 - National Wagon Preservation Group, Chasewater Railway

Models

In October 2022, Accurascale launched an OO gauge version of the wagon. [31] Other models have also been launched in O and N gauges. [32]

Notes

  1. ↑ The prototype HHA hopper was 29 feet 8 inches (9.04 m) in length, and 9 feet (2.7 m) wide. The first converted HAA to CDA (353224), was 9,040 millimetres (356 in) in length, and 2,692 millimetres (106 in) at its widest. [11] [12]
  2. ↑ Other wagons were also used to transport china clay out of Cornwall and Devon to other points in Britain (such as Irvine and Stoke-on-Trent) and to Europe, but the CDAs remained within the South West. [15]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Direct Rail Services</span> Rail freight company in Great Britain

Direct Rail Services (DRS) is a rail freight company in Great Britain, and is one of the publicly owned railway companies in the United Kingdom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bodmin and Wenford Railway</span> Heritage railway in Cornwall, England

The Bodmin and Wenford Railway is a 6 miles 12 chains (9.9 km) heritage railway at Bodmin in Cornwall, England. Its headquarters are at Bodmin General railway station and it connects with the national rail network at Bodmin Parkway.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wensleydale Railway</span> Heritage railway in North Yorkshire, England

The Wensleydale Railway is a heritage railway in Wensleydale and Lower Swaledale in North Yorkshire, England. It was built in stages by different railway companies and originally extended to Garsdale railway station on the Settle-Carlisle line. Since 2003, the remaining line has been run as a heritage railway. The line runs 22 miles (35 km) between Northallerton West station, about a fifteen-minute walk from Northallerton station on the East Coast Main Line, and Redmire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hopper car</span> Railroad freight car used for transporting loose bulk commodities

A hopper car (US) or hopper wagon (UIC) is a type of railroad freight car that has opening doors on the underside or on the sides to discharge its cargo. They are used to transport loose solid bulk commodities such as coal, ore, grain, and track ballast. The hopper car was developed in parallel with the development of automated handling of such commodities, with automated loading and unloading facilities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Atlantic Coast Line (Cornwall)</span> Railway line in Cornwall, UK

The Atlantic Coast Line is a 20+3⁄4-mile (33 km) Network Rail branch line which includes a community railway service in Cornwall, England. The line runs from the English Channel at Par, to the Atlantic Ocean at Newquay.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Par railway station</span> Railway station in Cornwall, England

Par railway station serves the villages of Par, Tywardreath and St Blazey, Cornwall, England. The station is 281 miles 66 chains down the line from London Paddington, measured via Box and Plymouth Millbay. It is the junction for the Atlantic Coast Line to Newquay.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">British Rail Class 315</span> Class of 61 British 4-car electric multiple units

The British Rail Class 315 is a fleet of alternating current (AC) electric multiple unit (EMU) trains, built by British Rail Engineering Limited at Holgate Road Carriage Works in York between 1980 and 1981; they replaced the Class 306 units. It was a variant of unit derived from British Rail's 1971 prototype suburban EMU design which, as the BREL 1972 family, eventually encompassed 755 vehicles across Classes 313, 314, 315, 507 and 508. Revenue services with Class 315 units commenced in 1980 and continued until December 2022.

The Lostwithiel and Fowey Railway opened in 1869 as a broad gauge railway linking the port of Fowey in Cornwall with the Cornish Main Line at Lostwithiel. Its main traffic was china clay. The company ran into financial difficulties and closed in 1880, but the line was purchased by the Cornwall Minerals Railway and reopened in 1895.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Merry-go-round train</span> Train that loads and unloads its cargo while moving

A merry-go-round train, often abbreviated to MGR, is a block train of hopper wagons which both loads and unloads its cargo while moving. In the United Kingdom, they are most commonly coal trains delivering to power stations. These trains were introduced in the 1960s, and were one of the few innovations of the Beeching cuts, along with investment from the Central Electricity Generating Board (CEGB) and the NCB into new power stations and loading facilities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Blazey engine shed</span>

St Blazey engine shed is located in Par, Cornwall, United Kingdom, although it is named after the adjacent village of St Blazey. It was built in 1874 as the headquarters of the Cornwall Minerals Railway but for many years was a depot of the Great Western Railway. The current depot operator is DB Cargo and the depot TOPS code is BZ.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fowey railway station</span> Railway station in Cornwall

Fowey railway station was a station in Fowey, Cornwall from 1874 until 1965. The rail connection to the docks at Carne Point remains open for china clay traffic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cornwall Minerals Railway</span> United Kingdom legislation

The Cornwall Minerals Railway owned and operated a network of 45 miles (72 km) of standard gauge railway lines in central Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It started by taking over an obsolescent horse-operated tramway in 1862, and it improved and extended it, connecting Newquay and Par Harbours, and Fowey. Having expended considerable capital, it was hurt by a collapse in mineral extraction due to a slump in prices. Despite its title, it operated a passenger service between Newquay and Fowey.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Knottingley TMD</span> Disused railway traction shed in West Yorkshire, England

Knottingley TMD was a traction maintenance depot located in Knottingley, West Yorkshire, England. The depot was situated on the Pontefract Line and was near Knottingley station. It opened in 1967 to maintain the locomotives and hopper wagons for a planned 75 Merry-go-round trains a day, expected to use the Wakefield and Goole line.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leeds Midland Road depot</span> Railway locomotive and rolling stock depot in Leeds, England

Leeds Midland Road depot is a locomotive and rolling stock maintenance facility located in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. The site is located a few miles to the south-east of Leeds station on the line between Leeds and Castleford. Owned and operated by Freightliner, it is the heavy maintenance facility for its diesel and electric locomotives and wagon fleet.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">British Rail Class 69</span> Class of diesel train locomotive

The British Rail Class 69 is a class of diesel locomotives which are converted from Class 56 locomotives. The conversion work is performed by Progress Rail at their workshop in Longport.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">British Rail Class 810</span> Hitachi bi-mode train

The British Rail Class 810 Aurora is a type of bi-mode multiple unit being constructed by Hitachi Rail for East Midlands Railway. Based on the Hitachi AT300 design, 33 five-car units will replace Class 222 units on EMR's intercity routes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Intermodal railfreight in Great Britain</span> The movement of intermodal containers by rail within Great Britain

Intermodal railfreight in Great Britain is a way of transporting containers between ports, inland ports and terminals in England, Scotland and Wales, by using rail to do so. Initially started by British Rail in the 1960s, the use of containers that could be swapped between different modes of transport goes back to the days of the London, Midland & Scottish Railway.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Basford Hall Yard</span> Railway yard in Crewe, Cheshire, England

Basford Hall Yard is a railway marshalling yard near the town of Crewe, Cheshire, England. The yard, which is 0.93 miles (1.5 km) south of Crewe railway station, was opened in 1901 by the London and North Western Railway (LNWR). Initially used to marshal trains, the site now acts as a hub mainly for Freightliner intermodal trains, but also houses departmental sidings as used by Freightliner Heavy Haul, and other operators. For a period in the 1930s, Basford Hall was the busiest marshalling yard in Europe, handling between 28,000 and 47,000 wagons every week.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Milford Sidings</span> Railway sidings in North Yorkshire, England

Milford Sidings are a set of railway sidings in South Milford, North Yorkshire, England. The railways through the site were initially opened in 1834 and 1840, when transfer and marshalling yards opened too, which handled mostly coal. However, the current sidings were developed in the 1980s to function as layover sidings for coal trains to and from the Aire Valley power stations. The sidings have access to several railway lines radiating in almost all directions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Washwood Heath Yard</span> Disused railway yard in England

Washwood Heath Yard was a marshalling yard, and later sidings, to the east of Birmingham, in the West Midlands, England. The site was first host to sidings in the late 1870s, which were upgraded to a hump marshalling yard by 1900 which survived until the early 1980s. Thereafter, the site was flat shunted, but moreover used as a layover yard, rather than used for the transfer or interchange of wagons between trains. It was run-down and closed in late 2008 due to the loss of most of the automotive traffic that it was latterly used for. The lines were removed by 2020.

References

  1. ↑ Shannon 2021, p. 25.
  2. 1 2 Vehicle Diagram Book No. 320 for BR Freight Revenue Vehicles (Part 1) (Revision 6 ed.). Derby: British Railways Board. 1989. p. 57. Retrieved 23 October 2023– via barrowmoremrg.co.uk.
  3. ↑ Shannon 2021, p. 31.
  4. ↑ Ratcliffe, David (2019). "13: Going Private". The Changing Face of Railfreight. Horncastle: Mortons Media. p. 87. ISBN   978-1-911276-87-6.
  5. ↑ Clinnick, Richard. "Stop-start '66' put through its paces". railmagazine.com. Retrieved 22 October 2023.
  6. ↑ Vaughan 1987, plate 212.
  7. ↑ Barrow 2023, p. 28.
  8. ↑ Birkin 2022, p. M19.
  9. ↑ Birkin 2022, p. M20.
  10. 1 2 Stanford 2023, p. 20.
  11. ↑ "Prototype British Railways 'Merry-go-Round' hopper coal wagon, 1964 | Science Museum Group Collection". collection.sciencemuseumgroup.org.uk. Retrieved 23 October 2023.
  12. ↑ Vehicle Diagram Book No. 320 for BR Freight Revenue Vehicles (Part 1) (Revision 6 ed.). Derby: British Railways Board. 1989. p. 58. Retrieved 23 October 2023– via barrowmoremrg.co.uk.
  13. ↑ Clinnick, Richard (4 November 2009). "Cornish clay is clinging on". Rail Magazine (630). Peterborough: Bauer Media: 72. ISSN   0953-4563.
  14. 1 2 Barrow 2023, p. 29.
  15. ↑ Shannon, Paul (2007). Rail freight since 1968: bulk freight. Kettering: Silver Link. p. 59. ISBN   9781857942996.
  16. 1 2 Stanford 2023, p. 21.
  17. ↑ Shannon 2021, p. 22.
  18. ↑ Shannon 2021, p. 24.
  19. ↑ Mitchell & Smith 1998, plates 98-100.
  20. ↑ Hendry 2003, p. 60.
  21. ↑ Allen 1984, p. 24.
  22. ↑ Shannon, Paul (2007). Rail freight since 1968: bulk freight. Kettering: Silver Link. p. 58. ISBN   9781857942996.
  23. ↑ Clinnick, Richard. "Stop-start '66' put through its paces". railmagazine.com. Retrieved 22 October 2023.
  24. ↑ Sherratt, Philip, ed. (September 2023). "CDAs going west". Modern Railways. Vol. 80, no. 900. Stamford: Key Publishing. p. 21. ISSN   0026-8356.
  25. ↑ Coward, Andy, ed. (October 2023). "End for CDA china clay hoppers". Railways Illustrated. No. 248. Horncastle: Mortons Media. p. 24. ISSN   1479-2230.
  26. ↑ Barrow 2023, p. 32.
  27. ↑ Bickerdike, Paul, ed. (September 2023). "All change in Cornwall". The Railway Magazine. Vol. 169, no. 1, 471. Horncastle: Mortons Media. p. 11. ISSN   0033-8923.
  28. ↑ "Saving British Rail Engineering History 353224". crowdfunder.co.uk. Retrieved 22 October 2023.
  29. 1 2 Barrow 2023, p. 33.
  30. ↑ Bickerdike, Paul, ed. (January 2024). "CDA wagons secured for preservation". The Railway Magazine. Vol. 170, no. 1, 474. Horncastle: Mortons Media. p. 7. ISSN   0033-8923.
  31. ↑ Birkin 2022, p. M1.
  32. ↑ Stanford 2023, p. 24.

Sources

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.