British Rail coach type codes

British Railways coach designations were a series of letter-codes used to identify different types of coaches, both passenger carrying and non-passenger carrying stock (NPCS). The code was generally painted on the end of the coach but non-gangwayed stock had the code painted on the side.^[1] They have been superseded by TOPS design codes.^[2]

Background

The London, Midland and Scottish Railway and the London and North Eastern Railway developed systems of identifying railway carriages with alphabetic codes. When British Railways was formed in 1948 it adapted the LNER system.

Basic principles

The codes are made up from a combination of letters, some of which can indicate more than one word; their meaning can only be determined according to their position in the code or the presence of other letters. The letters are:

Code	Meaning
B	Brake van (prefix)
	Buffet (suffix)
	Battery (prefix for multiple unit vehicles)
C	Composite (more than one class of accommodation)
D	Driving vehicle (prefix)
	Disabled accommodation (suffix)
E	Either class of accommodation
	End vehicle (suffix)
F	First Class
G	Gangwayed (e.g. BG - Brake Gangwayed)
H	Handbrake
HM	Half-motor (prefix on multiple units) Used for vehicles with one traction motor or engine where the Motor type vehicle of that class usually had two
K	corridor
L	Lavatory (usually shown only in non-gangwayed or diesel multiple unit codes)
	Lounge (prefix) (but see SL)
M	Motor (powered) vehicle
O	Open (i.e. no compartments, or no kitchen in Restaurant cars); O not used for diesel multiple units as most are Open
o	Semi-open (i.e. mix of compartments and open) Some books have used so in place of o, to avoid confusion with O
P	Pantograph (prefix for electric multiple units)
	Pantry (suffix)
	Pullman (prefix)
	Parlour (suffix for Pullman cars)
R	Restaurant
RG	Restaurant Griddle
RK	Restaurant Kitchen
RM	Miniature/Modular Restaurant
S	Second Class (Standard Class from May 1985[3])
SL	Sleeper
T	Third Class
	Trailer (prefix for multiple unit vehicles)
	Trolley buffet (suffix)
	Tourist (prefix for hauled carriages, indicates 2+2 seating)
U	Unclassified accommodation
W	Wheelchair Area
Y	Four-wheeled vehicle[a]
Z	Six-wheeled vehicle[a]
If no such suffix, the vehicle is an eight or twelve-wheeled vehicle. The latter were not common, and were usually special saloons or restaurants.

These letters (except Y and Z) did not usually apply to passenger-rated but goods carrying vans (e.g. parcels vans, horse boxes, milk and fish vans). Their codes were an acronym of their traditional railway description, e.g. GUV for General Utility Vans.

List of codes used

The following list lists those codes that were used on BR cross-referred to the comparable code used by the LMS, with the exception that the letter S ("Second", later "Standard") is used where until 1956 the letter T ("Third") was used. Suffix codes Y or Z are not shown, as these could apply to variants of any or all vehicle types.

In the LNER system, S stood for "Second", a class between First and Third (which became Second on 3 June 1956). The original Second was more or less abolished in the 1870s as a result of the Railway Regulation Act 1844, remaining only in limited use for special services, such as those meeting ships (which retained the three-class system from which railway classifications had originated). In May 1988 BR reclassified Second to Standard but this did not alter the code.^[3]

Multiple unit coaches originally distinguished between open and corridor types by adding the letter O or K at the end (for example, TSO or TSK), and also distinguished coaches with lavatories by adding the letter L at the end (for example DMBSOL) but these fell out of use when corridor stock became less common which enabled the codes to be restricted to no more than four letters.^[4]

BR Code	Description	LMS Code
B[5]	Brake (non-gangwayed)
BC	Brake Composite
BCK[2][6]	Brake Composite Corridor	CBB
BCL	Brake Composite Lavatory
BCV	BRUTE Carrying Van
BDBS[4]	Battery Driving Trailer Brake Second
BDMS[4]	Battery Driving Motor Second
BDTC[4]	Battery Driving Trailer Composite
BDTC[4]	Battery Driving Trailer Composite
BDTS[4]	Battery Driving Trailer Second
BFB[2]	Bullion Container Flat
BFK[2][6]	Brake First Corridor	E
BFO[6]	Brake First Open
BG[2][6][5]	Gangwayed Full Brake	CBR
BGP	Brake gangwayed pigeon van
BGZ[5]	Brake gangwayed (six-wheels)	CR
BPOT[2][6]	Brake Post Office tender
BS[2]	Brake Second	H
BSK[2][6]	Brake Second Corridor	CH
BSL	Brake Second Lavatory	LH
BSO[6]	Brake Second Open	VH
BSO(T)[2][6]	Brake Second Open Trolley(Micro Buffet)
BTK[2]	Brake Third Corridor
BUO	Brake Unclassified Open
BY	Brake (non-gangwayed, four-wheeled)
BZ[5]	Brake (non-gangwayed, six-wheeled)	R
C[2]	Composite	BC
CCT[2][5]	Covered Carriage Truck
CK[2][6]	Corridor Composite	CBC
CL[2]	Lavatory Composite	LC
CO[6]	Composite Open	VC
CTO[5]	Open Carriage Truck
DBSO[6]	Driving Brake Second Open
DM	Driving Motor
DMB[4]	Driving Motor Brake
DMBC[4]	Driving Motor Brake Composite
DMBF[4]	Driving Motor Brake First
DMBS[4]	Driving Motor Brake Second
DMBSO	Driving Motor Brake Second Open
DMC[4]	Driving Motor Composite
DMLV[4]	Driving Motor Luggage Van
DMS[4]	Driving Motor Second
DTBS[4]	Driving Trailer Brake Second
DTC[4]	Driving Trailer Composite
DTS[4]	Driving Trailer Second
DTV[7]	Driving Trailer Van
DVT[6]	Driving van trailer
FK[2][6]	Corridor First	CL
FO[2][6]	Open First	QL
FOT	First Open Trolley
GUV[2][6][5]	General utility van
HB[2][5]	Horse box
IFV	Insulated fish van
KB[2]	Kitchen Buffet(no seats, later RKB)
LFK[2]	Lounge First
M[4]	Motor
MBS[4]	Motor Brake Second
MFLRK	Motor First Lavatory Kitchen[8]
MLV[4]	Motor Luggage Van
MPSL[8]	Motor Parlour Second Lavatory
MS[4]	Motor Second
MSLRK[8]	Motor Second Lavatory Kitchen
NPV[2]	Newspaper Van
PCP	Pullman Composite Parlour
PCV	Propelling control vehicle[9] or Parcels Van[2]
PFB[6]	Pullman First Brake
PFK[6]	Pullman First Kitchen
PFP[6]	Pullman First Parlour
PMV	Parcels & Miscellaneous Van (NPCS)[5] or Pantograph Motor Van (EMU coach)[7]
POS[2][6][5]	Post Office sorting van	POR
POT[2][6][5]	Post Office stowage van	PPR
PSB	Pullman Second Brake
PSP	Pullman Second Parlour
PTSO	Pantograph Trailer Second Open
PVG[6]	Packing Van Gangway (newspaper)
RB[2]	Restaurant Buffet
BRK[2]	Restaurant Buffet (larger kitchen)
RBR[2][6]	Restaurant Buffet Refurbished
RBS[2]	Restaurant Unclassed (proper buffet)
RC	Restaurant Composite	Compo RKC
RCO	Restaurant Composite Open	VC Dining
RE	Griddle[2]
RF[2]	Restaurant First	First RKC
RFB	Restaurant First Buffet
RFM[6]	Restaurant First Modular
RFO[2][6]	Restaurant First Open	QL Dining
RK[2][6]	Kitchen Car	KC
RKB[2]	Kitchen Buffet (no seats)	BRC
RLB[6]	Restaurant Lounge First Buffet
RMB[2][6]	Restaurant Miniature Buffet
RMBT[6]	Micro Buffet
RS	Restaurant Second	Third RKC
RSO[2]	Restaurant Second Open (without kitchen)	QF Dining
RU[2]	Unclassified Restaurant<	Common RKC
RUB[2]	Restaurant Unclassified (makeshift buffet)
RUK	Restaurant Unclassified Kitchen
RUO[2]	Restaurant Unclassified Open (with kitchen)
S[2]	Second	F
SCV[5]	Special Cattle Van
SD[2]	Saloon Discothèque
SK[2]	Corridor Second	CF
SLB[2]	Bullion Van
SLC[2]	Sleeper Composite	CSC
SLCP[2]	Sleeper Composite with Pantry
SLE[6]	Sleeper Either Class
SLEP[2][6]	Sleeper Either Class with Pantry
SLF[2]	Sleeper First	SC
SLO[2]	Open Second with Lavatory (Non-gangwayed)
SLSC[6]	Sleeper Support Coach
SLSTP[2]	Sleeper Second Twin-Berth with Pantry	SCT
SLO	Second Lavatory Open (within carriage)
SO[2][6]	Open Second	QF
SO(NG)[2]	Second Open (non-gangwayed)
SPV	Special Parcels Van
TAV[7]	Trailer Auxiliary Van
TBC[4]	Trailer Brake Composite
TBF[4]	Trailer Brake First
TBS[4]	Trailer Brake Second
TC[4]	Trailer Composite
TCC[10]	Trailer Composite Conductor
TCV[2]	Tiered Car Carrier
TF[4][10]	Trailer First
TFLRK[8]	Trailer First Lavatory Kitchen
TG[4]	Trailer Griddle
TGS[11]	Trailer Guard Second
TOV[2]	Third Open Vestibuled (Later reclassified TSO)
TPFL[8]	Trailer Parlour First Lavatory
TRB[4]	Trailer Restaurant Buffet Unclassified
TRFB[10]	Trailer Restaurant First Buffet
TRFM	Trailer Restaurant First Modular
TRSB[4][10]	Trailer Restaurant Second Buffet
TRUB[4][10]	Trailer Restaurant Unclassified Buffet
TRUK[4]	Trailer Restaurant Unclassified Kitchen
TS[4][10]	Trailer Second
TSCD[10]	Trailer Second Conductor Disabled
TSO[2][6]	Tourist Second Open
TSOD[6]	Tourist Standard Open Disabled
TSOE[6]	Tourist Standard Open End Coach
TSO(T)[6]	Tourist Second Open Trolley (Micro Buffet)
TU	Trailer unclassified
VFV	Ventilated fruit van

See also

British carriage and wagon numbering and classification

References

1. Parkin, Keith (1991). British Railways Mark 1 Coaches. Penryn: Historical Model Railway Society. pp. 64–65. ISBN 0-906899-49-4.
2. Parkin 1991, p. 205
3. Parkin 1991, p. 75
4. Mallaband, P.; Bowles, L.J. (1982). The Coaching Stock of British Rail. Clarkston: Railway Correspondence and Travel Society. p. 5.
5. Larkin, David (1978). BR General Parcels Rolling Stock. Truro: D. Bradford Barton. p. 2. ISBN 0-85153-320-5.
6. Wood, Roger (1989). British Rail Motive Power Combined Volume. Shepperton: Ian Allan. Section: Hauled Coaching Stock. ISBN 0-7110-1849-9.
7. Abbott, James (April 1995). "Derby rolls out Royal Mail trains". Modern Railways. pp. 223–224.
8. Marsden, Colin J. (2009). "Blue Pullman Stock and the APT Fleets". Modern Locomotives Illustrated. No. 176. p. 30.
9. Andred (October 1993). "Post Office push-pull". Modern Railways. pp. 598–600.
10. Marsden, Colin J. (2014). "The HST Part 1 The BR Days". Modern Locomotives Illustrated. No. 208. pp. 42–45.
11. Marsden 2014, p. 34

Further reading

• Cooper, Basil (October 1982). "Learn your letters". Rail Enthusiast. EMAP National Publications. pp. 44–45. ISSN 0262-561X. OCLC 49957965.