Category:BR Carriage classification codes

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BRBritish Rail or British Railways used a system for identifying carriage types using alphabetical codes, based on that previously used by the LNERLondon & North Eastern Railway. The notes below relate to carriages found on the SVRSevern Valley Railway.

Carriage class and internal layout

For passenger carriages, one letter indicated the class of carriage, normally F (First), S (Second, later Standard), T (Third) or C (CompositeCarriage having more than one class of seating, ie First and Third or latterly First and Standard., ie more than one class). A second letter would indicate the layout, typically O (Open) or K (Corridor). Thus a carriage with Third Class compartments off a corridor would be designated TK.

The letter T when used as a prefix to another carriage class meant ‘Tourist’, indicating 2+2 seating, for example TSO (Tourist Standard Open).

Guard's compartment

The code for carriages including a guard’s compartment would be prefixed by B (Brake), for example BTK. A carriage with a guard’s compartment and a through gangway for passenger access, but with no passenger seating was designated BG (Brake Gangwayed). A specialised form, BGP, indicated a Pigeon-van.

Restaurant carriages

Carriages with catering facilities, or whose principal use was for dining, were normally prefixed R (Restaurant). B as a suffix indicated Buffet. Common forms included RB (Buffet with cooking facilities) and RMB (Restaurant Miniature Buffet, serving snacks).

Other variants

The suffix Z indicated a 6-wheeled vehicle (for example the Barry Railway Composite coach is designated CZ).

Certain letter combinations were entirely descriptive; these included ROY (Royal Coach), INSP (Inspection Saloon), SLEP (Mk 3 Sleeper), GUVGeneral Utility Van, formerly used to transport mail and parcels (General Utility Van) and POS (Post Office Sorting)

LMSLondon Midland & Scottish Railway Codes

The LMSLondon Midland & Scottish Railway coach code and seating capacity is shown on the carriage frame

The LMSLondon Midland & Scottish Railway used a different series of coach codes. The equivalent codes for the LMSLondon Midland & Scottish Railway carriages on the SVRSevern Valley Railway were as follows[1]:

Generic type BRBritish Rail or British Railways Code LMSLondon Midland & Scottish Railway Code
Third open TO QF
Third corridor TK CF
Third corridor brake BTK CH
CompositeCarriage having more than one class of seating, ie First and Third or latterly First and Standard. corridor CK CBC
Passenger rated full brake BG CBR
6-wheel passenger rated full brake BGZ CR
First class open dining RFO QL (DINING)


See also

List of Carriages

References

  1. LMS Carriage Association