Post Office stowage van

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British Rail Post Office stowage van
In service1959–2004
ManufacturerBR Wolverton & York
Family name British Railways Mark 1
Number built19 (new), 21 (converted)
Fleet numbers80400–80439
Operator(s) British Rail(ways)
Specifications
Car length64 ft 6 in (19.66 m)
Width9 ft 3 in (2.82 m)
Height12 ft 9+12 in (3.90 m)
Maximum speed90–100 mph (145–161 km/h)
Weight34–35 tonnes (33.5–34.4 long tons; 37.5–38.6 short tons)
HVAC Dual heat (steam and electric),
ETH 3 or 4
Bogies BR2 or B5
Braking system(s) Vacuum or Dual (Air & Vacuum)
Track gauge 4 ft 8+12 in (1,435 mm)

A Post Office stowage van is a type of rail vehicle built for use in a travelling post office (TPO). Several of these have passed into preservation as they are very useful for storage on the railways.

Preservation

The preserved stowage vehicles are as follows:

Preserved BR Mk1 TPO Stowage Vehicles
NumberTOPS CodeBuiltLocationNotes
80401NTA1959 Wolverton Great Central Railway Originally fitted with collection nets.
80402NTA1959 Wolverton Nene Valley Railway Originally fitted with collection nets.
80411NTA1966 York Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway Rebuilt from BSK 35003.
80413NTA1966 York Rushden, Higham & Wellingborough Railway Rebuilt from BSK 35004.
80417NTA1968 York Nene Valley Railway
80423NTA1968 York Buckinghamshire Railway Centre
80429NTA1973 York Colne Valley Railway
80433NTA1976 Wolverton Strathspey Railway Rebuilt from SK 25150.
80435NTA1976 Wolverton Gloucestershire Warwickshire Railway Rebuilt from SK 25117.
80437NTA1976 Wolverton Bo'ness & Kinneil Railway Rebuilt from SK 25068.
80438NTA1976 Wolverton Great Central Railway Rebuilt from SK 25139.

In addition, 80421 was also purchased for preservation by the Embsay and Bolton Abbey Steam Railway, but was scrapped in July 2008.

Pre-Nationalisation TPO Stowage Vehicles:

NumberCompanyBuiltLocationNotes
70268LNER1931 Dunkinfield Great Central Railway Converted from Pigeon Van in 1950. [1]
4958Southern1939 Ashford Pontypool and Blaenavon Railway In use as C&W store. [2]

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References

  1. "LNER 6777 Gresley Gangwayed Passenger Brake (Later POT) built 1931".
  2. "SR 4958 Post Office Tender Vehicle built 1939".