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The Common User
Scheme
During the First World War a
proportion of each of the British railway companies rolling stock was allocated
to a pool of 'common user' stock, in fact unless specially marked any wagon
would be assumed to be such. When a 'common user' wagon wandered onto another
company's rails they were permitted to retain the 'foreign' wagon and use it as
required. The RCH then determined any payment to be made to the parent company.
Every now and again a rake of empty wagons might be formed and returned to the
parent company but in general the stock remained in a fair balance. The common
user system reduced the empty wagon mileage from 60% of the total before the
war to only 20% of the total by 1918. This was self evidently a commercial
success and the scheme remained in operation right up to the nationalisation of
the railways after the Second World War.
Obviously the companies would reserve any special stock for their own use, but
there were variations in what the companies considered special. For example the
LMS, LNER and SR pooled their cattle wagons under the RCH 'common user' scheme
in 1927, the GWR however did not place their cattle wagons in the pool. More
specialised livestock vehicles, such as horse boxes, were not pooled by any of
the companies and other specialised rolling stock such as grain hoppers, banana
vans and fruit vans would also be reserved. These `non common user' vehicles
were marked as such and had to be returned to the parent company as soon as
possible after unloading, fees being paid if they were retained.
Railway company owned tarpaulin sheets were
brought into the Common User scheme in about 1917. In the main they would stay
with a particular wagon but it would be possible to see for example an LNER
wagon sheet draped over an LMS wagon. Sheets were easier to return than wagons
however, so this would not have been common.
The pooling of railway company stock was such an evident success
that a common user pool was also established for private owner vehicles. The
wagons belonging to the pool were clearly marked as such and the RCH determined
any payments required for the use of a pooled wagon. The private owner pool
markings were common from the 1920's until the Second World War, they are
described and illustrated in the section on Livery Information - Private Owner
Liveries.
Markings associated with
Common User Stock
Initially the common
use scheme only applied to wagons of over three planks in height, not including
vacuum braked wagons or wagons with hinged tarpaulin rails. Some companies
wished to pool wagons which fell outside this specification so these wagons
needed to be marked in some way. The standard marking was two X shapes in the
lower corners of the body with two more, inset slightly, on the solebar. I have
to date only seen wagons belonging to the GWR and L&YR carrying these
markings.
Following the grouping of 1923 the
scheme was extended to more and more vehicle types and the requirement changed
to marking stock which was reserved from the pool for the operating companies
own use. The LMS, LNER and SR settled on a six inch high letter N in the lower
corner of the body, the GWR adopted a metal plate as shown in the illustration
below.
Fig___ Markings associated with
Common User Stock
The four-plank GWR wagon has a sheet
supporter (and possibly a vacuum brake) and carried the four X markings. The
L&Y one plank wagon would not normally be included due to its low height
but as the L&Y operated large numbers of this type they marked some for
common use, again with the four X markings. The GW 21 ton mineral wagon shows
the post grouping 'Not In Common Use' plate, this was usually mounted as shown
in the lower right of the body but occasionally I have seen examples with the
plate mounted centrally on the body side. The N marking was usually in the
lower corners of the body sides, often on the corner plate. The NER implement
wagon has no body as such so the markings were on the solebars close to the
ends. There would be an N marking toward each end of both sides of the vehicle.
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