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Brake VansIn the years before continuous train brakes operated by the driver became commonplace, the brakevan was an essential item of equipment. The job of the guard, who rode in the van, was to apply a handbrake when called upon by the train driver (by a whistle code) and to take emergency action if a coupling broke and part of the train became divided. A very skilled job was carried out by these guards in a fairly spartan environment - each van has a seat, a coal stove, a desk for keeping records of the journey, and of course a handbrake wheel. Some have side lookouts so the guard can look along the train without leaving the van. In the years before WW2 many guards spent their working life in the same van, and kept it immaculate, equipping it with as many extra comforts as the railway rulebook would allow. Most good guards were used to the design of van used on their railway, and found the designs of other strange. GWR types, however, became universally unpopular due to the handbrake being outside and the lack of side lookouts. The BR standard brakevan overcame many of the earlier design faults and a handful are still in use on the railway today, despite the need for goods brakes having almost totally disappeared.Although the Foxfield Colliery railway did not originally use brakevans, despite the steep gradients, they are a very important part of the industrial railway scene, and examples of six different types can be seen at the railway, representing all the major designs in use in the last 100 years: GWR
20 ton "Toad" Brakevan 56550
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| For more information on the Foxfield Steam Railway, its passenger services and special events please see the official website at http://www.foxfieldrailway.co.uk. |