Merry-go-round train

Merry-go-round train
A merry-go-round train hauled by a Class 66 locomotive

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 axe, along with investment from the CEGB (Central Electricity Generating Board) and the N.C.B (National Coal Board) into new power stations and loading facilities. West Burton Power Station was used as a testing ground for the MGR system [1] but the first power station to receive its coal by MGR was Cockenzie in Scotland in 1966.[2] It was estimated at the time that the 80 MGR hoppers needed to feed Cockenzie would replace up to 1500 conventional wagons.[3] A 1.2GW power station, such as Cockenzie, receives up to 3 million tons of coal a year, whereas a larger 2GW plant, like West Burton, up to 5 million tons per year. Power stations that were built to handle the new MGR traffic were Aberthaw, Drax, Didcot, Eggborough, Fiddlers Ferry and Ratcliffe, all of which are still open for traffic at the present time. Many of the older power stations were gradually converted to MGR operation.

Contents

Balloon loop

Associated with merry-go-round trains are the construction of balloon loops at the origin and destination so that the train doesn't waste time shunting the engine from one end of the train to the other. However, whilst power stations such as Ratcliffe, West Burton and Cottam had balloon loops, few if any colliery/loading points had them and thus true merry-go-round operation never really existed.

Daleks

This is the nickname (from its appearance) given to the automatic door opening/closing equipment located on the approach to and from the bunker in the power station.

Wagons

When MGR services were first introduced, British Rail designed an all-new wagon with air brakes and a capacity for 33 tonnes of pulverised coal. The prototype was a 32 ton unit and was built at Darlington and tested in 1964.[4] Before the introduction of TOPS these wagons were referred to by the telegraphic code name "HOP AB 33", this was an abbreviation of Hopper Air Brake 33 tonne. With the introduction of TOPS in 1973 the wagons were given the code "HAA", over the years with modifications to wagons other codes have been allocated including HDA and HMA.

With the coming of privatisation to Britain's railways, new wagon types have been introduced by EWS (HTA), GBRf (HYA), Freightliner Heavy Haul (HHA and HXA) and Jarvis Fastline (IIA). These new wagons have increased tonnage and air-operated doors that do away with the need for the "Dalek" release mechanism at the power station end of the trip.

Locomotive control

Locomotives used on the MGR trains needed to be fitted with electronic speed control known as Slow Speed Control, so that the driver could engage the system and the train could proceed at a fixed very slow speed under the loading and unloading facilities. The system was originally fitted to some members of Class 20, Class 26 and Class 47. Later, some members of Class 37 were also fitted, while the system was fitted to all members of classes 56, 58, 59, 60 and 66. Additionally, all Class 50s were originally fitted, although the system was later removed due to non-use.

See also

References

  1. ^ Railway Magazine 1965 Jul p388
  2. ^ Railway Magazine 1965 Mar p172
  3. ^ Railway Magazine 1965 Apr p197
  4. ^ Railway Magazine 1965 Apr p197

Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем решить контрольную работу

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Merry-go-round (disambiguation) — A merry go round is another name for a carousel. Merry go round may also refer to: Merry Go Round (album), an album by Elvin Jones, released 1972. Merry Go Round (2000 album), an album by Delinquent Habits. Merry Go Round (song), a song by Mötley …   Wikipedia

  • Train-Train (álbum) — Train Train (トレイン トレイン, Torein Torein?) Es el tercer álbum lanzado por la banda japonesa The Blue Hearts.[1] Lista de canciones Train Train Merry Go Round (メリーゴーランド) De …   Wikipedia Español

  • Train-Train (album) — Infobox Album Name = Train Train Type = studio Longtype = Artist = The Blue Hearts Cover size = 150 Caption = Released = November 23, 1988 [http://www.bluehearts.com/album3.html Train Train] . bluehearts.com. Accessed February 22, 2008.] November …   Wikipedia

  • Merry Madagascar — Directed by David Soren Produced by Joe M. Aguilar Mireille Soria Written by …   Wikipedia

  • Unit train — A unit train, also called a block train, is a railroad train in which all the cars making it up are shipped from the same origin to the same destination. This saves the hassle of assembling and disassembling trains at rail yards near the origin… …   Wikipedia

  • Merry Hill Shopping Centre — Westfield Merry Hill Location Brierley Hill, Dudley, West Midlands, DY5 1QX, England Opening date 1985 Developer Richardson Developments …   Wikipedia

  • Casey Jr Circus Train — Autre(s) nom(s) : Casey Jr Le petit train du cirque Localisation Parc : Disneyland Zone : Fantasyland …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Friendship Train — The 1947 U.S. to Europe or American Friendship Train collected foodstuffs from American donors for transport to the people of France and Italy. Contemporaneous with the Marshall Plan, it provided desperately needed assistance in the aftermath of… …   Wikipedia

  • Another Town, Another Train — «Another Town, Another Train» …   Википедия

  • Money Train (soundtrack) — Money Train Soundtrack album by Various Artists Released November 21, 1995 Recorded 1995 Genre Urban …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”