How many carriages were used on a branch line?

[Jammy]

I know in the preservation days a steam hauled journey has always at least 10 carriages to accommodate lots of fare payers. But in the days of LNER how many carriages were used on a regular service on branch lines? What was the norm basically. As I know the norm nowadays for a DMU service is 2. As I'm recreating the LNER days on Trainz 2009 on many branch lines such as the Hull to Scarborough Line and those surrounding really.

Thank you.

[Colombo]

Jammy,

You really could expect to see any number at all, from a single brake composite to ten coaches or more. On some branches the same sets of two, three or four coaches would shuttle back and forth for weeks before being serviced.

The southern division of the NE Region operated a system whereby standard suburban sets consisted of 4 carriages: two brake thirds, a full third and a lavatory composite. At Hull, 24 sets of carriages operated a complicated roster, with each set forming a different train each weekday. With Sundays this meant that a set of coaches appeared on a particular train no more frequently than every 28 days before returning to the depot for servicing. A train in the Hull area would consist of one or two of these 4 car sets.

Colombo

[James Brodie]

Dear Sir,
Try and get hold of a booklet called CWDs-Carriage Working Diagrams. Not a collection of coach drawings but shewing train formations from the engine onwards.Darlington railway or York railway Museum may be able to help....or...Peter Hall.
Hope this is of some help to you.
Jim Brodie.

[jwealleans]

The NERA publish a Carriage Working diagram book from 1932 which should tell you everything you need to know.

[billdonald]

Just as an aside and a tip for researchers - the electrically operated diagrams in the Tyneside Electrified Area were published separately from the main steam-hauled carriage workings. Their generic title was Electric Car Set Workings which dated back to NER days. This is the title on the earliest I have which is dated 1912. These publications also included the workings of the parcel motors too.

Bill Donald

[coachmann]

Train length is only one factor. Photo albums and the like covering the Hull area you are interested in should be useful as they will also show the make up of trains. Were they made up of pre-grouping coaches? A mixture of NER and Gresley? Odd coaches from other districts and so on? Were any clerestory coaches or even 6-wheelers?

[BlythStationLad]

Just to echo comments from others: quiet rural Northumberland branch lines were often just one coach - a brake composite. Suburban non-electrified Northumberland branches were usually two- or three-coach sets, which could be strengthened as required.

Stock will depend on the era being modelled: clerestory coaches could still be seen in early BR days, mixed with more 'modern' Gresley and Thompson suburban stock.