GWR Route: Banbury to Wolverhampton

Hatton Station: gwrhj1895

A GWR Railcar with a composite coach in tow departs for Leamington Spa from Hatton station's branch platform. The Railcar is from the second batch which followed experimental Railcar No 18 which had been designed with the facility to tow another vehicle. This capability did, as stated on the Great Western Archive's website dramatically altered the principal by which the Great Western operated its railcars. They write 'Previously, the railcars were intended to supplement the existing steam traffic and in this they succeeded to the extent that they had to be replaced by steam-hauled trains, but after the introduction of number 18 with its trailing load, it was shown that railcars could transform a previous loss-making branch service and retain the ability to work the fast main line stopping services when required. The GWR ordered this further batch of railcars in September 1938 but with the Great Western producing the underframes, bogies, brake gear and bodies and AEC supplying the engines and transmissions for construction at Swindon. This arrangement may have come about as AEC were supplying the British Army with trucks and artillery tractors during a time of hasty rearmament. Not all cars were alike as numbers 19 to 33 were intended for branch-line working, number 34 was to be a second express parcels car, while numbers 35 to 38 were designed as twin-sets with buffets and toilets for working the Birmingham to Cardiff service.

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