Slip coach

A slip carriage slip or coach is a passenger who is disconnected during the drive from the train and stopped at the next station.

In Europe slip carriages came only in the UK for use. The local railway companies were under great competitive pressure and were anxious to keep the travel times as short as possible and to dispense with intermediate stops as possible.

To serve, intermediate stations, without losing time for maintenance, one or more carriages of the train slip attached. Before entering the destination station of the car the clutch is disconnected. The vehicle rolled into the station and was stopped by the guard with the hand brake on the platform, while the pulling stem could pass through the station at the speed limit.

The use of slip carriages had several drawbacks. The journey was only possible in one direction. The destination station had a locomotive to remedy the car ready and the car had to be added up for the return trip to the starting station to another train. Each slip carriage of a train also had to be staffed by a specially trained Schaffner.

The first slip coaches were in 1851 (other sources: 1858) used, most of the compounds existed in the years before the First World War. Due to the related costs this mode of operation over the years has been uneconomical. During the Second World War perverted no slip coaches, thereafter only on routes of the Great Western Railway ( GWR ). After the nationalization of the GWR in 1948 there were approximately twelve compounds with slip coaches. From 1959 it was only a car to Bicester, in September 1960 this operation finally disappeared.

From today's ( and continental European ) perspective, it seems dangerous, uncouple a passenger car while driving and to let roll. This is not the case. The method has been practiced by renowned railway companies for decades without influence on the accident statistics.