Postal car: description. Transportation of mail. Mail of Russia - processing and delivery of correspondence

Mail is the most important attribute of communication, uniting people of all countries and peoples. The messengers delivered important messages even in the time of the pharaohs. Since then, the methods of delivering correspondence have been constantly improved. The sending of letters and parcels by the postal car actually began to be carried out from the moment of construction of the first railway lines.

Historical reference

Sending messages by horse messengers has been practiced since ancient times. In the 15th century, with the popularization of postal items, the volume of correspondence increased significantly, as a result, the first postal vehicles appeared. A century later unpretentious carts and sledges were replaced by high-tech covered carriages equipped with shock absorbers, lanterns and other attributes of technological progress.

The closest analogue of a post car is the "horse" - horse-drawn carriages, moving along rails. They began to be used in the early 19th century and were very common, especially in the UK and other European countries.

From horse traction to steam

In 1825, the English engineer-inventor George Stephenson built the first experimental railroad between the towns of Darlington and Stockton-on-Tees, along which a "steam cart" of his own design cruised. The second railway line between Manchester and Liverpool was put into operation in 1830. On this line the locomotive began to shuttle, transporting the passenger and baggage car, in which, among other things, messages were delivered.

The British realized that this type of transport would help speed up the delivery of correspondence. Initially, the mailboxes were simply loaded onto special platforms. However, the process of loading / unloading required a lot of time. 6.01.1838 on the London-Birmingham line left the first-ever specialized postal car. Since September of the same year, letters and parcels have begun to be sorted on the way, this has made it possible to significantly shorten the time between sending a message and receiving it.

World experience

Given that rail transport is not much dependent on the vagaries of the weather, it is fast enough and adheres to a strict timetable, it has gradually become the main way of delivering messages. After England, the postal car began to be used in many advanced countries:

• Belgium (1841);
• Germany (1848);
• France (1848);
• Russia (1861);
• USA (1864).

Russian empire

1837 became the year of the birth of public railway transport in Russia. The 27-kilometer section of the "Petersburg-Tsarskoe Selo-Pavlovsk" section was powered by high-capacity steam locomotives, which carried up to 300 passengers. Taking into account the British experience, the postal department concluded an agreement with the Tsarskoye Selo Railway to transport correspondence. The parcels were loaded into a baggage car, parcels and letters were delivered by couriers.

The first specially designed post car of Russian Railways, which allowed the processing of correspondence on the fly, began work in 1861. Prior to this, the delivery methods were "multicolored": transportation of bales in freight and slightly converted passenger cars, transportation of carriages on freight platforms, couriers, etc.

In 1869, the Railway Postal Transportation Authority was formed. By this time, messages and parcels were transported along 35 railway lines, including abroad. By the end of 1903 almost 600 postal cars were in operation in Russia.

the USSR

The country of the Soviets accelerated the construction of new railway lines. There appeared high-speed locomotives of a new generation: diesel locomotives and electric locomotives. On the nodal lines large post-railroad post-offices began to be created. The mail car became the basic, most reliable means of delivery of letters.

Since 1962 began to ply postal and baggage trains, which included up to 12 postal and up to 8 luggage wagons. Any of the segments of the composition could easily be undocked and attached to another compound. Subsequently, 23 such trains moved to the railways of the country, and the number of mail cars approached 900 units. The correspondence, processed on the move, was put a special stamp - "PI".

Russia

In the 21st century, the "Mail of Russia" continues to deliver correspondence via rail. However, the volume of items decreased significantly. If in the last year of the existence of the USSR there were 1319 mail wagons, then by 2007 1079 units remained in service. Today, they are half that.

However, one can not speak of the sunset of the railway post. In many regions railway transport is the most reliable (often the only) mode of communication. In 2005, the St. Petersburg plant "Vagonmash" constructed a new mail wagon of modification 61-531. It provides comfortable conditions for employees, there is a TV, microwave, air conditioning, telephone. An effective fire extinguishing system will save valuable cargo.

A modern automated sorting system allows you to process shipments to only two employees, instead of six. As a result, the useful space increased, the load capacity of the car increased to 22 tons. The main way of transportation will be a multi-turn container, loaded into containers.

Since 2009, the delivery of "Post of Russia" is carried out, including new carriages Torzhok plant. Model 61-906 is designed for delivery of correspondence in containers. Specifications:

• Permissible speed: 160 km / h.
• Load capacity: 22 tons.
• Number of employees: 4.
• Number of doors for loading: 4.

The car is equipped with air conditioning, heating, ventilation.

Evolution

The first models of mail cars were imperfect. Short and narrow, they provided little space for staff and correspondence. Gradually, the design was improved. In England, invented devices that allowed fast, on-the-go loading bags with parcels and letters. Over time, the premises were equipped, where employees could process and sort messages, coupe for rest and eating. In some models there were comfortable coupes for high authorities.

Interesting was the development of postal cars in the United States, cruising along the "Wild West". In connection with the frequent attacks of bandits, they gradually strengthened, until they turned into fortresses on wheels. The postal car was escorted by armed personnel. The case was armored, along the perimeter there were embrasures for shooting, in the open area magnesium torches illuminated the territory for several kilometers.

A modern postal car is a complex complex in which all kinds of departures are processed. It allows the reception, storage, sorting and transportation by rail of containers and bags with parcels, letters, parcels, telegrams and other types of messages.

Types of wagons

During the one and a half century history, various designs of postal cars were developed:

• Courier;
• Postal and warehouse;
• Postal-sorting;
• Mobile control wagons;
• common use;
• Brake.

Prospects

In developed countries, postal turnover by railway transport is decreasing. By speed, he is inferior to aviation, and by mobility - to motor transport. However, due to the high load capacity and the ability to handle the items on the move, this type of delivery remains relevant.

One of the first countries where postal cars stopped using it was the United States. Until the 1940s, rail transport transported about 300 tons of parcels, letters, parcels. There were over 9,000 routes. Previously, the transportation of correspondence brought the main income to railway companies and covered losses from transportation of people. By 1950, as a result of a change in the policy of the US Postal Service, the number of lines was reduced to 794. And in 1962 there were only 262 routes between major cities.

In 1967, the Postal Service abolished the carriage of items by rail. The cancellation of profitable contracts led to the financial problems of railway companies, many passenger routes were closed. The last time a postal car in the US drove on the route New York - Washington on June 30,

In Great Britain, the overwhelming majority of postal items were carried by rail. In the 1990s, the state-owned company Royal Mail was privatized, the transportation structure changed. In 2003, the enterprise decided to suspend mail delivery by trains, but later some of the routes were restored. Also in the country there are private companies that control part of the market.

In the vast Asian space, postal trains remain a popular way of delivering correspondence. For example, in 2016, on the route Beijing-Moscow, in addition to the luggage wagons of international fast passenger routes, a regular train consisting exclusively of mail cars was launched. China intends to increase the transportation of letters and parcels along the route "New Silk Road" with the extension of routes to the largest cities in Europe.