Stored/surplus WIA wagons

[Oxfordblues]

About 60 WIA 5-unit covered car-carriers were built in 1995 for international automotive traffic via the Channel Tunnel but were never used for their intended purpose. Most have been deployed on the Castle Bromwich (suspended) and Morris Cowley to Southampton Eastern/Western Docks flows, but many are scattered around the network, often in a dreadful state. Examples include 3 at Micheldever, many at Didcot Yard, one at Hinksey, and a few at Newport AD, Bescot Down Yard and Arpley Sidings.

DB Cargo seems to make no attempt to manage the fleet. Most stored examples are now too derelict to be safely moved by rail, they are too large to be taken away by road for scrap and many are at locations which are inaccessible for breaking-up on site.

Is there some potential new automotive flow for which they are being retained? Ellesmere Port and/or Tyne Dock to mainland Europe perhaps? I wonder if any readers with inside knowledge can enlighten me.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 1 Aug 2021 ==

I've just seen this DB Cargo UK press release: DB Cargo UK to invest £2.6 million in new automotive facilities at Toton

As the WIAs are the only fully-enclosed wagons suitable for UK-mainland Europe automotive traffic they are the most-likely candidate for the new flow. Will we at last see the three woebegone examples at Micheldever dragged back to Eastleigh for Arlington Fleet Services to refurbish? And perhaps a clear-out of Didcot Yard, plus those at Newport AD Jn, Bescot Down Yard, Hinksey Yard and Arpley Sidings?

 

[Adrian Barr]

The WIAs did get used on at least a couple of fairly short-lived channel tunnel flows. One of those conveyed Nissans from Tyne Dock to Carimate (near Milan) in Italy. I seem to remember it ran once a week. Wikipedia says the Sunderland plant is 5 miles from Tyne Dock, with Nissan's international distribution based there, so it would have been a convenient railhead at a location they were already using.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/91977133@N04/16368343924

Another slightly more recent flow moved Hondas from Swindon, loaded at a purpose-built terminal at South Marston. This was another once-a-week flow which I think went to Ghent in Belgium.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/stevekingd1015/3974143899/

In general, stored wagons will be graded by condition, with their fate also depending on potential future requirements (which in the automotive industry are not easy to predict). Some stored wagons may be ready for use after receiving routine maintenance, others will require more work to get them back into service, and some may be awaiting disposal (like you say, not always straightforward, depending on location). It's not unusual for long-term stored wagons to be made fit for a "one journey only" movement for either repair or disposal. Periodic maintenance to main line standards costs money even if the wagons don't do anything, so any wagons not required for current traffic levels are likely to be put into store.

The WIAs are specialist wagons which is probably why they have been kept so long without getting scrapped (perhaps as a kind of strategic reserve for potential new traffic flows, where owning the right type of wagon might help to win a contract). The logic is presumably that you can repair a stored wagon if you need it, but you can't un-scrap one! If there was a need for the stored WIAs, the better condition ones would probably be sent to the DB-owned facility at Stoke for overhaul, which already does some maintenance on the active fleet (they occasionally show up on the Crewe railcam on the trip from Warrington Arpley). Wagons are more resilient to storage than locos, but at some point a wagon sat in a siding for years must become uneconomic to repair. Things like wheelsets or bogies can be replaced, but if the body is also in poor condition, it becomes like the broom which needs a new brush and a new handle! Also wagons are sometimes put into store precisely at the point where they need costly work doing. In addition, the WIAs are a bit unusual, with the articulated bogies and the roof mechanism, which I imagine would make them more costly to put back into service compared to other wagon types.

You mention Ellesmere Port - there was a trial movement of cars in 2016 from Ellesmere Port to Germany, with "Opel badged Vauxhall Astras for Export via HS1 and the Channel Tunnel." I mentioned it in the "car trains" section at the bottom of this post in the Ellesmere Port thread:
https://www.railforums.co.uk/threads/ellesmere-port-docks-lines-sidings.213237/#post-5041554
A WIA was used for an earlier trial assessing feasibility of loading cars at Ellesmere Port, but the service to Germany used STVA wagons, at least as far as Barking. At the time (pre-Brexit) there was an idea of turning Barking Euroterminal into a car distribution hub, with connections to the channel tunnel via HS1. I believe the cars were transhipped into German wagons at Barking, presumably to trial offloading and loading there.

Regarding the movement of Toyota cars from Toton, there are four letters in that press release that might have a bearing on the wagons used - STVA. The trains won't necessarily need fully-enclosed car-carriers for transit through the tunnel - I'm thinking of the long Corby car trains which ran from France (for the distribution company GEFCO) using French-registered open double-deck wagons:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/world_railways/49133567737/

STVA are now part of "Groupe CAT" who are a major player in the car distribution business - https://www.groupecat.com/activities/vehicle-logistics
When Groupe CAT took over STVA in 2017, they acquired a mind-boggling 2600 car wagons (most based in Europe). These kind of companies can deal with the whole supply chain. With the traffic from Dagenham for example, I suspect that the actual distribution contract for the cars is with STVA, with rail hauliers involved as hook-and-haul "partners."
https://www.railfreight.com/uk/2020/01/14/1500-ford-cars-a-week-by-train-across-the-uk/

STVA have dominated much of the UK rail distribution of cars over the past few years, which may partly explain the lack of action for the WIAs. The BMW services from Cowley are a notable exception, with port company SCH handling loading at Cowley in addition to offloading at Southampton:
https://www.schltd.com/port-terminal-company-sch-expands-vehicle-motorcycle-preparation/

If STVA are involved in the Toyota scheme, then given the amount of wagons STVA own, many of which have the ferry/channel tunnel compatibility logo on the side, it wouldn't surprise me if the trains use their wagons, with the choice not necessarily being up to DB!

 

[Dunfanaghy Rd]

I remember a few years ago STVA ran a trial to So'ton East Docks carrying 2 each of every model of Jaguar in their own wagons (TDT852 / Laadffoos) to see how possible it was. The reason was simply that they didn't have to pay for the use of the wagons; they reckoned the WIAs were a bit pricey (with a sarky comment about them having been built with taxpayer's money).
Pat

 

[Oxfordblues]

Thank you Adrian for that well-informed assessment. As you say STVA have a large fleet and must be likely to favour their own equipment. But all of their wagons are open or curtain-sided, so their loads must be vulnerable to pilferage, vandalism and graffiti attack. Plus a very handy cross-Channel option from Calais for potential asylum-seekers! I agree that STVA would prefer to use their own wagons and a lot of the WIAs would need serious remedial work, but the latter are the only fully-enclosed automotive wagons to the UK loading-gauge and therefore the only secure option.

 

[fgwrich]

I remember a few years ago STVA ran a trial to So'ton East Docks carrying 2 each of every model of Jaguar in their own wagons (TDT852 / Laadffoos) to see how possible it was. The reason was simply that they didn't have to pay for the use of the wagons; they reckoned the WIAs were a bit pricey (with a sarky comment about them having been built with taxpayer's money).
Pat

That somewhat wouldn't surprise me. The WIA's, as impressive as they are, do seem to be another one of DB's large ex BR (RFD presumably in this case?) inheritance and unsure what or how to operate them. In a way, being covered and articulated vehicles, it's a shame no-one has considered the idea of converting them for other uses - perhaps as refrigerated cargo carriers from the continent?

After reading this thread this evening, I looked into the story behind the heavily graffitied and stored WIAs at Micheldever. It seems they arrived there in summer 2009, presumably after the downturn in traffic from the Oxford Cowley as a result of the economic crash at the time. I don't believe any have left or have moved since, though the yard at Micheldever does see some occasional use from track plant / machines.

 

[Defiance149]

The IPA cartics for the Toyota flow were sent to France back in June for overhaul, may well include fitting roofs as some of the type already have. Video on YT

 

[172007]

Strange really, I would have though the WIA's would be more suitable for channel tunnel flows than any other wagon. I always thought the main restricting factor on channel tunnel freight was in reality migrants. There are a lot less places for migrants to hide with WIA's than any other wagon even then the cost to check WIA's would be a frustratin sum of money I imagine.

 

[Meerkat]

Strange really, I would have though the WIA's would be more suitable for channel tunnel flows than any other wagon. I always thought the main restricting factor on channel tunnel freight was in reality migrants. There are a lot less places for migrants to hide with WIA's than any other wagon even then the cost to check WIA's would be a frustratin sum of money I imagine.

Surely checking for immigrants is just a technological gate with sensors these days?
still easier with an enclosed wagon though

 

[3973EXL]

Is the choice of wagon type for a flow, so simple?

Disregarding ownership and costs, what other factors need to be considered?

Here is another question to kick off. Why are there car trains with double deck wagons running under X headcodes?
Answer, the load on the wagon is Exceptional because it exceeds the dimensions of the Loading Gauge W6A. Wagons are built to conform with the Loading Gauge or, European wagons only registered for GB use if they do.
Don't confuse the matter with larger Gauges such as W12 etc. These are container Gauges. If you wish to load a wagon in excess of W6A, the Exceptional Load Procedure is used. Dimensions are submitted to Network Rail with route details and if approved, authorisation as a 3973EXL form is issued.

Why is this important? Simple answer is motor vehicles have got bigger over the years, width & height.
Loads on double deck wagons are limited by the height between decks and the maximum height above rail level on the top deck. Not only do you need clearance to safely drive vehicle on/off, but also ensure margins to avoid movement damage in transit.

Problem with WIAs, less load space as the roof has to be within W6A and you need that safe gap once the roof is closed. These are high value loads and companies such as STVA do all that's possible to avoid damage because they must provide a high quality service to the manufacturer.
WIAs do provide good protection/security for vehicles if they fit and the sums work for STVA.

If loading in both directions, wagons suitability is necessary in both directions.

If vehicles are not suitable for double deck wagons, single deck wagons will be used, more wagons/train length required. STVA have modified wagons over the years with side screens/curtains and roofs to protect vehicles on their single deck wagons and side protection on double decks.


The stored wagons at Micheldever were, I believe moved from Eastleigh TMD.
Maintenance/repairs used to be undertaken at the TMD on wagons. I cannot remember if this ceased at this time, or there was some other reason to clear the stored/surplus wagons to the DB sidings at Micheldever.
Surplus or vehicles requiring expenditure get stored. Not going to spend money until they have a use.

 

[172007]

Surely checking for immigrants is just a technological gate with sensors these days?
still easier with an enclosed wagon though

I suspect if there was an effective technological solution to detecting people hiding on freight trains then the channel tunnel would be lot busier than it is.

 

[Meerkat]

I suspect if there was an effective technological solution to detecting people hiding on freight trains then the channel tunnel would be lot busier than it is.

I don’t see how it’s harder than on the millions of trucks that cross the Channel

 

[furnessvale]

I don’t see how it’s harder than on the millions of trucks that cross the Channel

Some time ago, some sort of detector "arch" was fitted at the French side through which freight trains were meant to pass with the intention of detecting bodies on trains.

I have no idea if it worked or even if it is still in use.

 

[172007]

I don’t see how it’s harder than on the millions of trucks that cross the Channel

1 million trucks has 1 million drivers all responsible for their individual trucks. A train has one driver, the route is known including where it regularly stops for driver changes signal check and is looped. Its alson known where the train originates and also the tunings. A lot easier for things to happen.

 

[Meerkat]

1 million trucks has 1 million drivers all responsible for their individual trucks. A train has one driver, the route is known including where it regularly stops for driver changes signal check and is looped. Its alson known where the train originates and also the tunings. A lot easier for things to happen.

The trains stop in fenced off places in one unit. The lorries are stopping all over the place, often unattended, and even get attacked in the queue for the Port.
Would these WIA wagons be enclosed enough for carbon dioxide detectors to work?

 

[Bonemaster]

When these wagons were built the channel tunnel freight projections were that freight would grow to rapidly to 10million tonnes per year, what actually happened was it never got close to those kind of numbers and is closer now to 1 million tonnes per year, therefore it really is no surprise that wagons built for this market are lying around unused.

 

[172007]

The trains stop in fenced off places in one unit. The lorries are stopping all over the place, often unattended, and even get attacked in the queue for the Port.
Would these WIA wagons be enclosed enough for carbon dioxide detectors to work?

The trains won't stop in fenced off areas all the time. If the train cones from Milan, Barcelona, Frankfurt there is not a fence at every signal, loop, yard. The trains will no doubt travel some of the time at night too. For the WIA's they are not going to be loaded at Calais, more like the sidings at BMW, Peugeot. Once the gangs know where the train originates and its route then they will be targeted.

 

[Meerkat]

The trains won't stop in fenced off areas all the time. If the train cones from Milan, Barcelona, Frankfurt there is not a fence at every signal, loop, yard. The trains will no doubt travel some of the time at night too. For the WIA's they are not going to be loaded at Calais, more like the sidings at BMW, Peugeot. Once the gangs know where the train originates and its route then they will be targeted.

Not convinced. Gangs use cooperative lorry drivers rather than pot luck.
The individual refugees gather round the places they can have the most goes at getting on a lorry - ie near the port. If the yard at the tunnel is protected (the worst times were disorganised groups of refugees storming the yard and trains weren’t they??) and they don’t stop nearby they should be ok.
Can you even get on a WIA type wagon without breaking some kind of lock or seal?

 

[Dunfanaghy Rd]

To open up a WIA:
a) plug it into a 3-phase 415v supply (7-pin plug) and break out the control panel, or (if that is too easy for you)
b) apply hand winders to the sockets at the corners to each element. (Never saw that done!)
Pat

 

[furnessvale]

Not convinced. Gangs use cooperative lorry drivers rather than pot luck.
The individual refugees gather round the places they can have the most goes at getting on a lorry - ie near the port. If the yard at the tunnel is protected (the worst times were disorganised groups of refugees storming the yard and trains weren’t they??) and they don’t stop nearby they should be ok.
Can you even get on a WIA type wagon without breaking some kind of lock or seal?

My brother knew a co-operative lorry driver. He stopped for fuel in Calais and another driver told him he had just seen several illegals getting in the back of his truck. The reply came back, "That's OK, I'm on my way to Italy!"

 

[Adrian Barr]

I remember a few years ago STVA ran a trial to So'ton East Docks carrying 2 each of every model of Jaguar in their own wagons (TDT852 / Laadffoos) to see how possible it was. The reason was simply that they didn't have to pay for the use of the wagons; they reckoned the WIAs were a bit pricey (with a sarky comment about them having been built with taxpayer's money).
Pat

This comment brought back some vague memories. In fact there is some footage on Youtube of loading trials at Castle Bromwich. The video linked below is a slideshow of pictures showing Land Rovers and Range Rovers being loaded to open flat wagons back in 2017. If you look on the same channel there are a few more short videos, including footage showing the loading of Jaguars to both decks of the WIAs, and careful checking of clearances as they load different models of Land Rover / Range Rover over the ramp onto the flat wagons. Interestingly, the mobile ramps allow loading over the top of the buffer stops.

Video: Photo Compilation - Loading Unloading Trial
Channel: Mark Moore

After that trial, the Castle Bromwich service did start using some STVA wagons around 2018 - searching "6O30 Southampton" on flickr brings up various photos. From then on about half the train was WIAs with the rest being STVA flat wagons (loaded in two adjacent sidings as per the video).
Original formation entirely made up of WIAs (2015): https://www.flickr.com/photos/186579225@N03/50188954692/
Using (mostly) open STVA flat wagons + WIAs (2018): https://www.flickr.com/photos/16645820@N06/43251383742/
Using covered STVA wagons (TDT852) + WIAs (2020): https://www.flickr.com/photos/robmcrorie/49497925031/

This photo from 2018 clearly shows the Range Rovers (Velars?) and Land Rover Discoverys loaded to the train: https://www.flickr.com/photos/terry47401/46356909391/
These would have been produced at Solihull and would no doubt be too big to fit in the double-deck WIAs, which are not designed for SUVs. The Jaguars produced at Castle Bromwich itself remained in the WIAs by the looks of it. I'm not sure what the likelihood is of this traffic restarting, but if it did it would be a good candidate for using WIAs again.

The WIAs were also originally used on the Halewood to Southampton flow. In Paul Shannon's recent book Rail Freight: North West England, there's a photo of a train of WIAs leaving Halewood, with the caption stating this traffic commenced in 2001 for Jaguar. On flickr, there are photos of WIAs on this service up until around 2010 - the daylight return working around this time ran as 6M58 from Southampton to Warrington: https://www.flickr.com/photos/113923498@N03/12618182434/
In 2011 there was a big investment at Halewood and it started producing the Range Rover Evoque. This expanded the number of trains (up to 3 departures a day as 6O38 / 6O42 / 6O46) and also required a change of wagon type (to the covered single-deck TDT852s) due to the size of the vehicles. In the Freightmaster Publishing book "Loco Review 2012" (some of those Loco Review books are very cheap second-hand on Ebay, lots of nice photos) there's a 2011 picture of some brand new TDT852 covered STVA wagons being hauled from Dollands Moor to Didcot by a Colas 66, probably for that flow.

After reading this thread this evening, I looked into the story behind the heavily graffitied and stored WIAs at Micheldever. It seems they arrived there in summer 2009, presumably after the downturn in traffic from the Oxford Cowley as a result of the economic crash at the time. I don't believe any have left or have moved since, though the yard at Micheldever does see some occasional use from track plant / machines.

The stored wagons at Micheldever were, I believe moved from Eastleigh TMD.
Maintenance/repairs used to be undertaken at the TMD on wagons. I cannot remember if this ceased at this time, or there was some other reason to clear the stored/surplus wagons to the DB sidings at Micheldever.
Surplus or vehicles requiring expenditure get stored. Not going to spend money until they have a use.

There's a Youtube video of the WIAs arriving at Micheldever as a 4Z21 on 21/8/09, which ran from Wembley. The 3 WIAs had reached Wembley from Dollands Moor, having spent some time on the other side of the channel (I have no idea where they went or what they were doing; possibly being trialled for use on mainland European flows).

Video: 4Z21 66077 with WIA car carriers at Micheldever oil terminal sidings 21/8/09
Channel: justinfoulger

I think the choice of Micheldever as a storage location was probably just somewhere to keep a few of these these enormous wagons out of the way without taking up siding space in busy yards or paying rent for storage (I assume DB must own those sidings). For many years there would have been space in the former Washwood Heath yard for spare automotive wagons. With all the changes to siding and yard ownership, siding space is at a premium these days in many locations.

Eastleigh TMD started maintaining the Virgin Voyager fleet years ago and I think the depot may have shifted more into passenger train maintenance / storage / commissioning or whatever they do there these days (they still service some DB locos working into Southampton Docks). GBRF took over the operation of Eastleigh yard, meaning it's not quite so simple to drop off wagons from passing DB services and trip them into the TMD. The depot appears to operate under the "Arriva TrainCare" brand these days - https://www.arrivatc.com/eastleigh/
Stock photo with a good view of the repair shed: https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-a...iving-maintenance-at-eastleigh-172456577.html

STVA wagons sometimes receive maintenance at nearby Eastleigh works, occasional wagons being attached to Halewood - Southampton car trains and tripped across. On one occasion last year there were evidently enough wagons to justify a special move from Eastleigh Works to Dagenham, with DRS 57002 providing power - https://www.flickr.com/photos/ianmartian/50274874183/

STVA wagons also visit Telford for attention on the "as required" trip from Warrington Arpley. There's a weekly tripper between Warrington, Garston and Halewood which connects these wagon maintenance moves together and also provides a link into the Dagenham - Mossend services at Warrington. There's some nice footage of the Telford working here, with a VSOE-liveried 67!

Video: Class 67024 working 6G51 arriving at Donnington Rail Freight Terminal
Channel: Jacob's Rail Adventures

The IPA cartics for the Toyota flow were sent to France back in June for overhaul, may well include fitting roofs as some of the type already have. Video on YT

Nice to see that video. Looks like the side screens on the upper decks have been temporarily removed - I don't think you could fit an actual roof without being significantly out of gauge (certain car models on the upper deck can already slightly exceed the standard loading gauge, requiring X headcodes and special paperwork, as 3973EXL mentions).

I think the situation with migrants in the Channel Tunnel has improved a lot since the days when they caused major disruption to freight trains. The big camp at Calais was closed, and £5 million spent on improvements to security fencing according to wikipedia -
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calais_Jungle
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Channel_Tunnel#Illegal_immigration
Trains are now moving between secure yards on each side of the tunnel, with checks involved at both ends, making goods trains a more challenging prospect compared to hiding in the back of a lorry, or sailing across the channel on a boat. It doesn't mean the tunnel is 100% secure, just that there are easier options...

Vehicle security (from damage or vandalism) will come down to a trade-off between costs and risks of different wagon options; those kind of decisions will be very familiar to a company like STVA - according to the CAT Groupe website they shipped 8.9 million new vehicles in 2018, 7% by rail, so they should know what they are doing! Having said that, vandalism can certainly be a potential problem - there's a paragraph in Paul Shannon's excellent book Rail Freight Since 1968: Cars, Containers and Special Traffic which mentions a flow of Vauxhall Astra estates from Ellesmere Port to Purfleet in early 2000, which ceased running due to unsustainable levels of vandalism. It's a shame this traffic didn't (or perhaps couldn't for some reason) switch to using the WIAs...

I think the best chances of the WIAs being put back into use (and the reasons for retaining them) would be:

1) For a high-value or vandalism-prone flow which needs fully enclosed wagons (such as the Jaguars from Castle Bromwich if that flow resumed)
2) For an increase in volumes / extra services on their existing Cowley workings
3) For some new flow where STVA has no involvement, where the customer needs the haulier to provide wagons

I was pleasantly surprised by the Toyota announcement, so who knows what developments could occur in the future...

 

[60maniac]

I am an avid follower of all things "car train" , the double deck wagons seen off to France on the video above were regulars on early Longbridge flows through the tunnel, admittedly cars have grown since then but proves they can be used on that traffic, I suspect they are off for a coat of blue paint - I know some of the STVA wagons used on 6X41/6X43 flows are very old I had read dating back to the 50s? But not sure how true that rumour is.

FLHH used to do this traffic on Megafret wagons with decks fitted, the now unused decks are all piled up in a corner of Crewe Basford Hall.

 

[FOCTOC]

This comment brought back some vague memories. In fact there is some footage on Youtube of loading trials at Castle Bromwich. The video linked below is a slideshow of pictures showing Land Rovers and Range Rovers being loaded to open flat wagons back in 2017. If you look on the same channel there are a few more short videos, including footage showing the loading of Jaguars to both decks of the WIAs, and careful checking of clearances as they load different models of Land Rover / Range Rover over the ramp onto the flat wagons. Interestingly, the mobile ramps allow loading over the top of the buffer stops.

Video: Photo Compilation - Loading Unloading Trial
Channel: Mark Moore

After that trial, the Castle Bromwich service did start using some STVA wagons around 2018 - searching "6O30 Southampton" on flickr brings up various photos. From then on about half the train was WIAs with the rest being STVA flat wagons (loaded in two adjacent sidings as per the video).
Original formation entirely made up of WIAs (2015): https://www.flickr.com/photos/186579225@N03/50188954692/
Using (mostly) open STVA flat wagons + WIAs (2018): https://www.flickr.com/photos/16645820@N06/43251383742/
Using covered STVA wagons (TDT852) + WIAs (2020): https://www.flickr.com/photos/robmcrorie/49497925031/

This photo from 2018 clearly shows the Range Rovers (Velars?) and Land Rover Discoverys loaded to the train: https://www.flickr.com/photos/terry47401/46356909391/
These would have been produced at Solihull and would no doubt be too big to fit in the double-deck WIAs, which are not designed for SUVs. The Jaguars produced at Castle Bromwich itself remained in the WIAs by the looks of it. I'm not sure what the likelihood is of this traffic restarting, but if it did it would be a good candidate for using WIAs again.

The WIAs were also originally used on the Halewood to Southampton flow. In Paul Shannon's recent book Rail Freight: North West England, there's a photo of a train of WIAs leaving Halewood, with the caption stating this traffic commenced in 2001 for Jaguar. On flickr, there are photos of WIAs on this service up until around 2010 - the daylight return working around this time ran as 6M58 from Southampton to Warrington: https://www.flickr.com/photos/113923498@N03/12618182434/
In 2011 there was a big investment at Halewood and it started producing the Range Rover Evoque. This expanded the number of trains (up to 3 departures a day as 6O38 / 6O42 / 6O46) and also required a change of wagon type (to the covered single-deck TDT852s) due to the size of the vehicles. In the Freightmaster Publishing book "Loco Review 2012" (some of those Loco Review books are very cheap second-hand on Ebay, lots of nice photos) there's a 2011 picture of some brand new TDT852 covered STVA wagons being hauled from Dollands Moor to Didcot by a Colas 66, probably for that flow.





There's a Youtube video of the WIAs arriving at Micheldever as a 4Z21 on 21/8/09, which ran from Wembley. The 3 WIAs had reached Wembley from Dollands Moor, having spent some time on the other side of the channel (I have no idea where they went or what they were doing; possibly being trialled for use on mainland European flows).

Video: 4Z21 66077 with WIA car carriers at Micheldever oil terminal sidings 21/8/09
Channel: justinfoulger

I think the choice of Micheldever as a storage location was probably just somewhere to keep a few of these these enormous wagons out of the way without taking up siding space in busy yards or paying rent for storage (I assume DB must own those sidings). For many years there would have been space in the former Washwood Heath yard for spare automotive wagons. With all the changes to siding and yard ownership, siding space is at a premium these days in many locations.

Eastleigh TMD started maintaining the Virgin Voyager fleet years ago and I think the depot may have shifted more into passenger train maintenance / storage / commissioning or whatever they do there these days (they still service some DB locos working into Southampton Docks). GBRF took over the operation of Eastleigh yard, meaning it's not quite so simple to drop off wagons from passing DB services and trip them into the TMD. The depot appears to operate under the "Arriva TrainCare" brand these days - https://www.arrivatc.com/eastleigh/
Stock photo with a good view of the repair shed: https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-a...iving-maintenance-at-eastleigh-172456577.html

STVA wagons sometimes receive maintenance at nearby Eastleigh works, occasional wagons being attached to Halewood - Southampton car trains and tripped across. On one occasion last year there were evidently enough wagons to justify a special move from Eastleigh Works to Dagenham, with DRS 57002 providing power - https://www.flickr.com/photos/ianmartian/50274874183/

STVA wagons also visit Telford for attention on the "as required" trip from Warrington Arpley. There's a weekly tripper between Warrington, Garston and Halewood which connects these wagon maintenance moves together and also provides a link into the Dagenham - Mossend services at Warrington. There's some nice footage of the Telford working here, with a VSOE-liveried 67!

Video: Class 67024 working 6G51 arriving at Donnington Rail Freight Terminal
Channel: Jacob's Rail Adventures

Nice to see that video. Looks like the side screens on the upper decks have been temporarily removed - I don't think you could fit an actual roof without being significantly out of gauge (certain car models on the upper deck can already slightly exceed the standard loading gauge, requiring X headcodes and special paperwork, as 3973EXL mentions).

I think the situation with migrants in the Channel Tunnel has improved a lot since the days when they caused major disruption to freight trains. The big camp at Calais was closed, and £5 million spent on improvements to security fencing according to wikipedia -
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Calais_Jungle
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Channel_Tunnel#Illegal_immigration
Trains are now moving between secure yards on each side of the tunnel, with checks involved at both ends, making goods trains a more challenging prospect compared to hiding in the back of a lorry, or sailing across the channel on a boat. It doesn't mean the tunnel is 100% secure, just that there are easier options...

Vehicle security (from damage or vandalism) will come down to a trade-off between costs and risks of different wagon options; those kind of decisions will be very familiar to a company like STVA - according to the CAT Groupe website they shipped 8.9 million new vehicles in 2018, 7% by rail, so they should know what they are doing! Having said that, vandalism can certainly be a potential problem - there's a paragraph in Paul Shannon's excellent book Rail Freight Since 1968: Cars, Containers and Special Traffic which mentions a flow of Vauxhall Astra estates from Ellesmere Port to Purfleet in early 2000, which ceased running due to unsustainable levels of vandalism. It's a shame this traffic didn't (or perhaps couldn't for some reason) switch to using the WIAs...

I think the best chances of the WIAs being put back into use (and the reasons for retaining them) would be:

1) For a high-value or vandalism-prone flow which needs fully enclosed wagons (such as the Jaguars from Castle Bromwich if that flow resumed)
2) For an increase in volumes / extra services on their existing Cowley workings
3) For some new flow where STVA has no involvement, where the customer needs the haulier to provide wagons

I was pleasantly surprised by the Toyota announcement, so who knows what developments could occur in the future...

Superb piece that, thanks. I used to frequently work those trains in and out of Southampton Eastern Docks.

 

[Dunfanaghy Rd]

I am an avid follower of all things "car train" , the double deck wagons seen off to France on the video above were regulars on early Longbridge flows through the tunnel, admittedly cars have grown since then but proves they can be used on that traffic, I suspect they are off for a coat of blue paint - I know some of the STVA wagons used on 6X41/6X43 flows are very old I had read dating back to the 50s? But not sure how true that rumour is.

FLHH used to do this traffic on Megafret wagons with decks fitted, the now unused decks are all piled up in a corner of Crewe Basford Hall.

The Autocarrier inserts were sold by Freightliner to STVA some years ago. They were then modified by Eastleigh Works to suit Multifret wagons that belong to Ermewa (rescued from a yard in N France). Can't remember when this happened - most annoyingly I can't find the STVA guff any more.
(There were some covered units; don't know what ha[[ened to those.)
Pat

 

[Adrian Barr]

The Autocarrier inserts were sold by Freightliner to STVA some years ago. They were then modified by Eastleigh Works to suit Multifret wagons that belong to Ermewa (rescued from a yard in N France). Can't remember when this happened - most annoyingly I can't find the STVA guff any more.
(There were some covered units; don't know what ha[[ened to those.)
Pat

There's a brief entry on the old version of the LTSV wagons website, dated June 2016, about those IFA multifrets:

https://www.ltsv.com/w_home_news_2016.php

Recently modified by Arlington Fleet Services at Eastleigh are several French IFA multifret intermodal twin-sets. These grey container flats have been fitted with car-carrying 'auto-racks', previously used by Freightliner but now repainted red. The wagons are owned by Ermewa, the racks by STVA, and they are in use between Southampton and Garston carrying Ford vans.

The earliest photo of these wagons in traffic on the same website is dated May 2015. The photo index for the new version of the website is here - https://www.ltsv.com/rd/photos.php
You can select "IFA-E" in the "TOPS Code" filter and then click "apply filters." It's an impressive website with recent wagon news and various other stuff

Also a couple of photos on flickr give good views of the wagons loaded and empty:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/dan700/29549597163/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/dan700/29615498334/

I didn't realise that those decks / inserts had previously been used by Freightliner.

I know some of the STVA wagons used on 6X41/6X43 flows are very old I had read dating back to the 50s? But not sure how true that rumour is.

Most of the active STVA fleet is fairly modern, I think the oldest wagons are the 874376xxx IFA-G wagons (TDT898 in STVAs terminology) which date back to the late 70s -
https://gingespotting.smugmug.com/Wagons/I-TOPSCode/IFA-Car-Carrier/i-8GbLdbS

There were some older wagons built in the 60s such as the PJA Comtic sets (which were apparently converted from MAT cartics with the top decks removed), but these are no longer in use -
https://gingespotting.smugmug.com/Wagons/P-TOPS-Code/PJA/i-VJMhR7C
https://ukrailwaypics.smugmug.com/UKRailRollingstock/P-Tops-codes/PJA-STVA-Cartic-4-single-level/

There were some "Railease" car wagons converted from Mk1 coach underframes that were still in traffic in the 1990s I think, but I dont know if they were used on Dagenham services.
In "Private Owner Wagons in Colour - For the Modeller and Historian" by David Ratcliffe there is a photo of range rovers loaded to a wagon at Dover in 1988 which had been converted from ex-Southern Railway coach underframes!

 

[Dunfanaghy Rd]

TDT898 means 8 axles, 1998. The donor wagons, though, were much older. I don't know enough to identify from the underframe, but I think they were a fairly generic French 2 axle jobby. One mod was removal of the lever hand brakes and addition of 2 wheel operated hand brakes. (The hand brake shaft was left in situ, where it rattles around uselessly!)
In theory the oldest are the TD452 twin-sets. Some were given roofs and hitched together as 4-sets. I never saw a builders plate older than about 1960. Again they were originally something else before being modded.
I believe (open to correction) that TD stands for 'Transport divers'. Double deckers are coded TA (Transport d'automobiles?)
Pat

 

[Jamesrob637]

Weren't a few of these stored at Exeter for a while?