SCT Europe has recently delivered its newest bogie, the Barber Low Ride 14.25 (BLR14.25), to UK wagon builder W.H. Davis. A feature of the bogie is 577mm diameter wheels that allow a wagon deck height of 720mm above rail. This enables 45ft x 9ft 6in containers to be transported on the UK W8 loading gauge by the W.H. Davis Super Low 45, 57t GLW, intermodal freight wagon.

The Barber Low Ride 14.25 has opened over 5,000 miles of the UK rail network to high cube boxes. As the containers are located over the bogie, an extra four containers per train can be transported in the same train length on existing routes. This is equivalent to a 14% increase in capacity.

UK W8 gauge-connected ports can now transfer containers to the east and west coast main lines, saving thousands of road journeys per year. Additionally, the W8 routes in north-east Scotland are now open to high cube container traffic. The Barber Low Ride 15.5 is also available for 62t GLW wagons with a higher deck height above rail.

Barber Ride bogies are designed to be ‘track and RCF friendly’. They are manufactured from high-strength cast steel to impart high fatigue strength and extended service life, providing high operational efficiency with low maintenance.

The Barber ride bogie range includes:

• Barber Low Ride 14.25 – BLR14.25 (for 720mm deck height, 57t GLW UK intermodal freight wagons)
• Barber Low Ride 15.5 – BLR15.5 (for 746mm deck height, 62t GLW UK intermodal freight wagons)
• Barber Easy Ride 25.4 – BER25.4 (for 101.6t GLW UK coal, aggregate and steel wagons)
• Barber Easy Ride 22.5 – BER22.5 (for 90t GLW UK wagons, 90t/100t GLW rest of Europe)