An open wagon is a piece of rolling stock designed to carry bulk goods that are impervious to weather, such as coal, scrap metal, or ballast. They are loaded from the top by cranes or chutes and often unloaded by rotary dumpers or through side doors. In North American parlance, these are universally known as gondolas.
Heard on the job
The shunter is coupling up a string of open wagons loaded with scrap steel.
Do not mix it up with
- Gondola: Open wagon is the British term; gondola is the North American equivalent.