Brake Post Office Stowage Van
Encyclopedia
A Brake Post Office Stowage Van is a type of rail vehicle built for use in a Travelling Post Office.
British Rail
built nine of these vehicles between 1959 and 1968, to two similar designs, both based on the Mark 1 coach design
. They were numbered in the range 80450-80458. Following the Great Train Robbery
, vehicles from 80456 onwards featured a revised design with smaller windows.
In the early 1970s, British Rail introduced the TOPS
classification system. Vehicles were given the TOPS code NU, followed by an A if they were air-braked, V if vacuum-braked, or an X if they had both air and vacuum brakes.
British Rail
British Rail
British Railways , which from 1965 traded as British Rail, was the operator of most of the rail transport in Great Britain between 1948 and 1997. It was formed from the nationalisation of the "Big Four" British railway companies and lasted until the gradual privatisation of British Rail, in stages...
built nine of these vehicles between 1959 and 1968, to two similar designs, both based on the Mark 1 coach design
British Railways Mark 1
British Railways Mark 1 was the family designation for the first standardised designs of railway carriages built by British Railways. Following nationalisation in 1948, BR had continued to build carriages to the designs of the "Big Four" companies , and the Mark 1 was intended to be the...
. They were numbered in the range 80450-80458. Following the Great Train Robbery
Great Train Robbery (1963)
The Great Train Robbery is the name given to a £2.6 million train robbery committed on 8 August 1963 at Bridego Railway Bridge, Ledburn near Mentmore in Buckinghamshire, England. The bulk of the stolen money was not recovered...
, vehicles from 80456 onwards featured a revised design with smaller windows.
In the early 1970s, British Rail introduced the TOPS
TOPS
Total Operations Processing System, or TOPS, is a computer system for managing the locomotives and rolling stock owned by a rail system...
classification system. Vehicles were given the TOPS code NU, followed by an A if they were air-braked, V if vacuum-braked, or an X if they had both air and vacuum brakes.
Preservation
All three of the latter-build Mk1 vehicles have been preserved. Also a survivor from GWR has also made it into preservation.| Number | TOPS Code | Built | Location |
|---|---|---|---|
| 80456 | NUA | 1968 York | Nene Valley Railway Nene Valley Railway The Nene Valley Railway is a preserved railway in Cambridgeshire, England, running between Peterborough Nene Valley and Yarwell Junction. The line is currently seven and a half miles in length... |
| 80457 | NUA | 1968 York | Rushden, Higham & Wellingborough Railway |
| 80458 | NUA | 1968 York | Great Central Railway Great Central Railway (preserved) The Great Central Railway is a heritage railway split into two adjacent sections, one in Leicestershire and the other Nottinghamshire.The Leicestershire section is currently Britain's only double track mainline heritage railway, with of working double track, period signalling, locomotives and... |
| Number | Company | Built | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 814 | GWR | 1940 Swindon | Didcot Railway Centre Didcot Railway Centre Didcot Railway Centre, located in the town of Didcot in the English county of Oxfordshire, is based around the site of a comprehensive "engine shed" which became redundant after the nationalisation of the UK railways, due to the gradual changeover from steam to diesel motive power.-Description:The... |
Only exchange equipped coach with nets on both sides |