A specialized piece of rolling stock built to haul loose bulk materials like coal, grain, ore, or ballast. The interior features sloped sides that use gravity to direct the payload down to hinged doors or gates at the bottom. They come in open-top variants for weather-resistant loads and covered variants for moisture-sensitive goods.
Heard on the job
Spot those three empty hopper cars under the tipple so we can load them.
Also heard as
- hopper