NPCCS (Non Passenger Carrying Coaching Stock)

[Guest dilbert]

In trying to identify the criteria on how a merchandise vehicle is rated as NPCCS, I can't define a pattern ot logic to this, hence the rather simplistic question.

 

If I take the GWR Coaching Index as an example, would a Bullion van and TPO stock (diagrams M & L respectively) be considered as NPCCS ? These vehicles did follow the GW painting practice for passenger stock.

 

Milk traffic was classified under dia. O. The vans (Siphons) would have received the 'brown' livery, whereas the milk tankers (which I understand that the tank body was owned by the dairy/milk co-op whilst the wagon itself was owned by the GWR) would have been been decorated appropriately.

 

Diagrams N (Horse boxes) & P (Carriage trucks) received the 'brown' livery.

 

In the GWR Wagon index there were several vehicles built for passenger-rated trains such as Fish, Fruit, Meat, Prized Cattle wagons and some telegraph coded MINKs. Dependent on the category, the wagons bodies would be painted in brown or grey or white.

 

Were there merchandise classification types? Perishables, value related, turnround requirements (some vehicles were branded for specific routes) etc...?

 

Did the same situation exist with the LMS, LNER & SR ? Post nationalisation, did BR try to standardise/streamline the NPCCS definition?

 

A whole lotta questions... dilbert

 

edit to correct a couple of instances of NPCSS (doh!)

[Oldddudders]

Not my area of expertise (what is?!) but I suspect the Railway Clearing House would have had a role in identifying vehicles and traffics for which NPCCS status was agreed across the companies. The GWR instances you quote all appear to match comparable Southern vehicles/traffics. As has been discussed elsewhere on RMWeb in recent days, while e.g. horseboxes were clearly premium rated traffic to be attached to passenger services when loaded, they became ordinary wagons when empty to depot.

[Fat Controller]

I would suggest that, for a vehicle to be classed as 'NPCCS', it would require the following:-

Suspension suitable for higher speeds, so longer springs, with a secondary springing at the mounting.

Generally, a longer wheelbase and larger wheels than comparable 'goods'-rated stock.

Continuous brakes.

Through steam-heating pipe.

Many NPCCS vehicles seemed to have been fitted with interior lighting, presumably to assist with station duties if the entire vehicle wasn't being loaded/unloaded.

The traffic was what might be deemed 'premium':-

Parcels and mails (though at what point 'parcels' became 'sundries' and hence 'goods', I wouldn't like to say)

Perishables, most notably fish and dairy products, though some meat traffic was carried (rabbits and processed meats being the obvious ones)

Motor-cars (and before them, carriages) being carried for individuals, rather than 'trade'.

Horses, and some categories of livestock, such as calves and day-old poults.

[The Stationmaster]

Basically I think down to method of construction/materials/fittings which made the vehicle fit to be operated with passenger stock and thus able to run in passenger trains - brakes, buffers, suspension, wheels, steam pipe and so on. That would have made the vehicle fit to operate with most passenger trains without restriction (e.g GWR Bullion vans ran in Class A trains at their normal speed without any sort of restriction).

 

Freight traffic classification ran into pages and pages of rate tables covering such delights as 'hides' and things like carboys (with different classes of contents) and so on. The difference between parcels and 'goods smalls' was basically down to cost although there were quite a lot of exclusions (e.g hides) from parcels and the weight limit of parcels was, I'm fairly sure, a good deal lower than the 1 ton upper limit on goods smalls. Hope that helps a bit.

[Guest dilbert]

Thank you for your replies - I suppose a lot of answers lie in the operational aspects of each of the railways - specific routes and merchandise, freight express vs passenger express, regular and seasonal traffic etc... dilbert