Coal drop

A coal drop is an elevated railway track designed to allow material to fall freely between the rails onto the ground beneath. It is used to rapidly unload hoppers containing coal and other bulk cargo.^[1] It is also referred to, in North East England, as a staith.^[2]

Coal drops, Station Road, Sowerby Bridge

Coal drops were particularly associated on British railways with the North Eastern Railway, which built them at many stations.^[3][4] It used a standard fleet of wagons with bottom doors.^[5]

See also

• Coal trestle

References

1. Ellis, Iain (2006). Ellis' British Railway Engineering Encyclopaedia. Lulu. p. 70. ISBN 978-1-84728-643-7.
2. Ellis 2006, p. 350
3. Tuffrey, Peter; Brooksbank, B. W. L. (2 July 2022). The East Coast Main Line 1939-1959 (Volume 2). Fonthill Media.
4. Deaver, Mitchell (16 January 2012). Railway Boy. AuthorHouse. ISBN 978-1-4685-3098-8.
5. Woods, George (15 February 2019). The Last Days of Steam in North East England. Amberley Publishing Limited. ISBN 978-1-4456-8440-6.