Apologies if this has been asked before, but I have been wondering why most trains in the UK seem to have a thin orange line between the doors and roof that stretches along the length of the train, including the cabs. Is there a technical/operational reason for this (maybe safety?) or is it an aesthetic thing I am overthinking?
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Orange line just below train roof
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RailUK Forums
221129
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It's the Cant Rail, and it indictates the safe level when operating below Overhead Electric Wires.
sprinterguy
Veteran Member
That piqued my interest: Looking at photos online, it appears that the orange line started to be applied - initially only beneath the pantograph well, between the cabs - to AC electric locos during 1979.
I was just trying to find some photos from that era but I’ve drawn a blank so far. Will try and later when I’ve finished work.
swt_passenger
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There was a discussion about this a few days ago, started out as a DMU question but led to general requirements and history fairly soon after:
www.railforums.co.uk
== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: ==
why the caution over head wires sign on a class 158
why do the tfw class 158s have a caution overhead wires sign above the cab spotted on 158387?
www.railforums.co.uk
== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: ==
It’s a stripe painted at “cant rail level”. Modern stock with a typical curved body doesn’t really have a physical cant rail.
pdeaves
Established Member
It's where the roof changes direction from the body side. The term is related to track cant in that sense.
coppercapped
Established Member
A 'cant rail' is a length of wood in the form of a right-angled trapezoid. It is used in fencing, see, for example, this page from Jewsons catalogue and scroll down a bit : https://www.jewson.co.uk/landscaping/landscaping-fencing/fence-boards-rails
The use of the term in railways comes from the days of wooden bodied stock where the 'cant rail' formed the longitudinal joint between the body sides and the roof. Indeed it pre-dates railways and the term was used in the construction of horse-drawn coaches.
The use of the term in railways comes from the days of wooden bodied stock where the 'cant rail' formed the longitudinal joint between the body sides and the roof. Indeed it pre-dates railways and the term was used in the construction of horse-drawn coaches.
swt_passenger
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“Cant Rail” also appears outside of railway use as a bevelled strip of timber. Available from builders merchants and fencing suppliers. On a wooden built coach you’d need a bevelled edge strip at the top of the sides where the curved roof joined it.
hexagon789
Veteran Member
From 1979 for AC Electrics as mentioned, cab bulkhead to cab bulkhead only initially as a trial.
From 1986 onwards for diesels, as you you yourself mentioned
On the Southern Region, stripes at cant rail level used to be different colours for different things. Yellow indicated a first class compartmente, red indicated a buffet car originally, and latterly compartment stock. The former would have been in use from at least the early 1960s.
These were below the cant rail height and were in use all over B.R. I don't remember the red stripe showing compartment stock only a buffet coach or restaurant coach. First class coaches also had a 1 on the door.
On the whole of BR not to mention the rest of Europe! But they were a couple of inches wide.
If I recall correctly, green was a 'Ladies Only' compartment.
Undiscovered
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The Cant line is a reminder that you Can't have any piece of equipment, or part of your body, above that line, as it's a marker of safe distance from the overhead lines.
Strangely enough your head is always above the line when getting in and out of locos.
Undiscovered
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Oooh. Never noticed that.
I know it's not on our DMUs as the guttering sits above it, at just the precise angle to tip water onto your unsuspecting head as you watch the train in and out of the platforms...
Not using 172s are you? They are very good at that!
Indeed across BR (below the cantrail), but the Southern did them first. The yellow stripes for first class, and red for refreshments, were actually a UIC (the European railways co-ordinating organisation) specification, and this spread via SR boat trains to the whole of BR.
I do recall a stripe over full compartments (mainly EPB units) introduced in their last years, when security in same had become an issue, I don't think it was done elsewhere, but have forgotten what colour. Ladies' Only compartments had I thought been discontinued before this, though they did indeed have green window stickers.
pdeaves
Established Member
Red ('dangerous' compartment warning colour).
The 508s were delivered to the Southern Region without cant rail stripes but the other four PEP-derived classes had them from new. Although DC, the 507s were always planned to run under wires and did so when the Hunts Cross extension opened in 1983. The 508s received their stripes when transferred to Merseyside.
The 313s were new in 1976 so may have been the first EMU class to sport cant rail stripes from new. I don't think the 312s had them at first.
The Merseyrail units also featured a green stripe from the mid-1980s. The centre section of the trailer carriages was reduced to 2+2 seating, to provide space for pushchairs, luggage, etc.
The 313s were new in 1976 so may have been the first EMU class to sport cant rail stripes from new. I don't think the 312s had them at first.
The Merseyrail units also featured a green stripe from the mid-1980s. The centre section of the trailer carriages was reduced to 2+2 seating, to provide space for pushchairs, luggage, etc.
norbitonflyer
Established Member
It was done following a murder in 1988, still unsolved. The victim was discovered in a compartment of a train that had just arrived at London Victoria. At the time EPB stock was the only type left with closed (full-width) compartments. The red stripe was added to the compartments of unrefurbished 2EPB and 4EPB stock, the 4EPBs being reformed so that most units had no such carriages, and compartment trailers being concentrated in a few units (most of which ended up with two such carriages) which were only used at peak hours when there would be safety in numbers. These received numbers in the 55xx series (other unrefurbished units being in the 50xx to 53xx range, and refurbished ones in the 54xx and 56xx range) The 2EPBs were not renumbered as all unrefurbished units were affected.
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Gloster
Veteran Member
Spellcheck seems to have improved. Well, maybe. A few years ago I wrote an article on my laptop and every time I typed in cant rail it changed it to cantorial, which is related to cathedrals. Now that I write this post Spellcheck first changes cant to can’t, and when that is corrected it keeps changing rail to tail.
Have you tried adding the word to your custom spell-check dictionary?
Gloster
Veteran Member
Far beyond my technical ability, if such a thing exists on my old laptop. Anyway, it is the only occasion that I have used it.
Usually, if spellcheck is persistently wrong in cases like this, I type a suitable word in between the two words, go on a couple of words and then come back and delete the extra word. Long-winded, but within my limited capabilities.
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