Coal was and still is the most common load seen on British Railways. The wooden private owner wagons were replaced by steel unfitted wagons in the 1950's with trains travelling at 20mph or less. In the early 1960s the small pick-up freight was disappearing as was the rail delivered market to the private coal merchant.
Coal is now primarily taken from mines or ports to power stations in block trains which travel at 40-60mph and are automatically loaded and unloaded often without the train stopping. Termed merry-go-round (MGR) frequently pass our factory on the Midland Mainline today. (Deliveries commenced in 1964).
Some wagons were later equipped with a canopy extension which allowed an increase in load capacity to 32 tons.
