Goods Wagons in the UK

Since the railway’s TOPS coding system was introduced in the 1970s, much has changed in the railfreight sector, notably rail privatisation in the mid-1990s. This book documents the wide variety of wagons built in the twentieth century and around the millennium that remain in use or were so until recently.

John Jackson sheds light on the assortment of letters and numbers these wagons carry, the UK wagon numbering systems in place today being complex and sometimes off-putting to the observer. Wagons built since 2008, for example, including some conversions and rebuilds, now conform to the Europe-wide system of wagon numbering (RIV). Earlier private-owner and air-braked wagons, however, do not. There is no doubt that a greater understanding of the UK wagon fleet enhances the appreciation of the rail enthusiast’s hobby, whether for railway modelling purposes or simply enjoying watching the real thing, or both.

Drawing on one of the largest collections of wagon photos on the internet, John Jackson explores almost 200 wagon survivors with the featured wagons arranged numerically for ease of reference.