Covered goods wagon
Since then, European railways have procured covered wagons which at least match the main dimensions of this standard, but otherwise have minor variations.
The following table contains details of the UIC ordinary covered wagon according to Behrends[3] because this is the single available source with systematic specifications.
The UIC's ordinary covered wagon class has rigid, fixed walls with sliding doors on each side.
The transportation of part-load goods that are susceptible to the weather in boxes, sacks and barrels is the main function of G class wagons.
Today the majority of part-load goods are moved in ISO containers, for which special flat wagons are available.
Where there is a requirement for the direct loading of part-load goods, wagons with sliding sides are preferred (see below), because they enable a faster transfer of pallets.
Today there are self-discharging wagons with opening roofs available for this type of freight that are quicker to load and unload.
Externally the most noticeable feature of these mainly twin-axled livestock vans were the slatted sides guaranteeing good ventilation.
Dividing walls on many types of livestock van enabled a vertical division of the loading space.
Today there are no livestock vans left in service, because animals can be transported at higher speed and with greater flexibility by road.
However, one remaining sphere of work is, for example, the transportation of the elephants for Circus Knie in special Hcks wagons belonging to the Swiss Federal Railways.
Wagons built up to the early 1980s have a loading area of 34.1 m2 (367 sq ft) without partitions and can take a maximum of 30 Europool pallets (code letter b).
On the more recent types were the dimensions were optimised: on 41.0 m2 (441 sq ft) of loading area (without partitions) up to 40 Europool pallets can be carried (Code letter bb).
However they need to take account of the fact that in many countries the permitted loading gauge varies and this reduces the interoperability of this vehicle.
The wagons cleared for use in Great Britain have a very small loading gauge and are distinguished by the code letters f, ff or fff.
As a result, a successor to the Gr Kassel emerged: the Ghs Oppeln with a 21.3 m2 (229 sq ft) loading area.
The Gfh Trier was also redesigned, but due to low demand this was not ready until 1940, and no more were built owing to the Second World War.
As covered wagons the Gmhs Bremen appeared as a successor to the Ghs Oppeln, and the Glmhs Leipzig followed the Gl Dresden.
More robust variants of these wagon classes were procured after the war by the Deutsche Bundesbahn and the Austrian Federal Railways (ÖBB).
In addition to soldiers, the Germans transported prisoners in crowded boxcars during the Nazi regime, and an undisclosed number of German soldiers captured by the U.S. Army died of suffocation in American boxcars transporting them from the front-line to prisoner of war camps in March 1945.
However, British Railways' fleet modernisation during the 1950s resulted in vans being used for a much higher proportion of merchandise traffic, and the fitting of vacuum brakes as standard.
