Loading Gauge

[D854_Tiger]

Back in the day, there always used to be loading gauges in virtually every minor siding to ensure freight loads never fell foul of the available clearance.

 

These have all disappeared (I believe) but what has taken it's place as there are still plenty of freights that in theory could be overloaded and engineering trains (such as those wagons designed to carry new point work) and, of course, steam engine tenders.

 

So how do they ensure nothing is overloaded, I ask because, whilst watching some recent Youtube clips, there was this Jubilee with a suspicious looking mountain of coal in the tender.

[brack]

Stronger overbridges.

Edited November 26, 2017 by brack

[iands]

Back in the day, there always used to be loading gauges in virtually every minor siding to ensure freight loads never fell foul of the available clearance.

 

These have all disappeared (I believe) but what has taken it's place as there are still plenty of freights that in theory could be overloaded and engineering trains (such as those wagons designed to carry new point work) and, of course, steam engine tenders.

 

So how do they ensure nothing is overloaded, I ask because, whilst watching some recent Youtube clips, there was this Jubilee with a suspicious looking mountain of coal in the tender.

If the "load" is not "containerised", then loads would (probably) be still inspected by a "Loads Master" (or some such similar titled person) before the wagons/train would be released for the journey.

 

Regards, Ian.

[Miss Prism]

It would help if Network Rail could decide on what its loading gauge should actually be, to prevent further decapitation of Kings.

[HillsideDepot]

If the "load" is not "containerised", then loads would (probably) be still inspected by a "Loads Master" (or some such similar titled person) before the wagons/train would be released for the journey.

 

Regards, Ian.

Containers have "out of gauge" problems too, and there are loading gauges, although not as we'd recognise them. This is the RAIB summary of an incident at Basinstoke:

 

At 10:13 hrs on 19 December 2008, a shipping container, which was loaded on a freight train travelling from Wakefield Europort to Eastleigh, struck the canopy above platform one at Basingstoke station at about 25 mph (40 km/h)as the train passed through. The canopy was damaged over a length of 130 m, and pieces of wood were scattered along the platform. No-one was hurt.

 

The immediate cause of the incident was that the combination of the container and the type of wagon it had been loaded onto was too high for the route on which the train was travelling, allowing the left-hand top corner of the container to strike the canopy.

 

The system for identifying container types and container / wagon combinations was prone to human error, in that:

• the container and wagon combination involved was not permitted on the route the train took

• incorrect information about the container was recorded by the train preparer at Wakefield, who did not correctly identify during his train examination the container type was incorrect for that particular wagon and route

• the decision of staff at Southampton to change the type code of the container on the computer system without checking with the Wakefield terminal

• the gauge to identify over-size trains at Wakefield was not operational.

The full report is here R212009_090812_Basingstoke.pdf

[D854_Tiger]

Containers have "out of gauge" problems too, and there are loading gauges, although not as we'd recognise them. This is the RAIB summary of an incident at Basinstoke:

 

At 10:13 hrs on 19 December 2008, a shipping container, which was loaded on a freight train travelling from Wakefield Europort to Eastleigh, struck the canopy above platform one at Basingstoke station at about 25 mph (40 km/h)as the train passed through. The canopy was damaged over a length of 130 m, and pieces of wood were scattered along the platform. No-one was hurt.

 

The immediate cause of the incident was that the combination of the container and the type of wagon it had been loaded onto was too high for the route on which the train was travelling, allowing the left-hand top corner of the container to strike the canopy.

 

The system for identifying container types and container / wagon combinations was prone to human error, in that:

• the container and wagon combination involved was not permitted on the route the train took

• incorrect information about the container was recorded by the train preparer at Wakefield, who did not correctly identify during his train examination the container type was incorrect for that particular wagon and route

• the decision of staff at Southampton to change the type code of the container on the computer system without checking with the Wakefield terminal

• the gauge to identify over-size trains at Wakefield was not operational.

The full report is here R212009_090812_Basingstoke.pdf

 

 

Blimey, the amazing part of that story must be that the train got as far as Basingstoke before it struck anything.

[The Johnster]

It would help if Network Rail could decide on what its loading gauge should actually be, to prevent further decapitation of Kings.

 

 

Thought that only happened to Charles 1st...

[SED Freightman]

If the "load" is not "containerised", then loads would (probably) be still inspected by a "Loads Master" (or some such similar titled person) before the wagons/train would be released for the journey.

 

Regards, Ian.

 

Generally speaking, the safe securing of any load these days will be examined before despatch by someone trained and passed as competent for the particular type of traffic involved, while for some types of traffic this will also involve signing the relevant wagon labels showing the load is fit to move.  There are now only a handful (at most) of staff who could be considered as competent to deal with anything much out of the ordinary, certainly there are no equivalent of the BR Divisional and Regional Loading Inspectors who were quite capable of dealing with all manner of truly exceptional and out of gauge loads in conjunction with the staff located in the Civil Engineers Gauging Sections.

[SED Freightman]

Back in the day, there always used to be loading gauges in virtually every minor siding to ensure freight loads never fell foul of the available clearance.

 

 

I believe the last conventional type of loading gauge to be installed on the South Eastern Division was erected in Queenborough Yard in about 1980 when imported Japanese cars (shipped to Sheerness) began to be loaded in Queenborough Pier Sdgs.  There was quite a bit of expense involved in the installation as not only did the loading gauge structure have to be manufactured and installed, but the siding for about 60ft either side also had to be considerably upgraded.  For modelling purposes it is worth remembering that a conventional loading gauge would usually need to be installed on a section of straight and level track which needs to extend for a wagon length either side of the gauge.