Mendip Rail has seen off the last of its O&K hopper wagons that carried aggregates in and out of its Somerset quarries for more than 35 years.
Mendip Rail has seen off the last of its O&K hopper wagons that carried aggregates in and out of its Somerset quarries for more than 35 years.
The final 29 of a fleet that once topped 200 were taken from Merehead Quarry to Crewe's Basford Hall Yard on April 3.
Mendip Rail estimates that each wagon has travelled approximately 1.3 million miles with the an estimated 68m tonnes of material carried between them.
The final batch of 33 HOA wagons, which are replacing the O&K hoppers, is due to arrive in the coming days. Once on site, Mendip Rail will have 203.
Damien Preece, General Manager - Rail South, said the new fleet has a carrying capacity of 76 tonnes, while the older variant could manage 75 tonnes “at a push”.
The new wagons also have a higher top speed, being able to travel at 65mph compared to 45mph of their predecessors which could restrict an entire train if just one was included in a formation.
“From a planning and operational perspective that was difficult,” Preece explained.
Speaking about the new fleet, he added: “Hopefully there will be fewer delays on the network. That can only be a positive for everyone.”
Preece said the new wagons also have air operated doors instead of mechanically wound ones.
“From a safety perspective it’s a big improvement,” adding that there were fewer staff movements around the wagons at terminals, and fewer chances for damage as a result from being mechanically opened and closed.
"Hopefully these will be running these for 30-40 years too," he added.
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Derek Amitri - 14/04/2025 09:07
Are the wagons able to operate at higher speed when unladen? Being able to run in a 'Class 4', ie 75 mph, schedule back to the quarry can make it easier to flight these trains in amongst Class 4 intermodal and passenger services.