page_title: Brake van
section_title: India
hierarchical_section_title: Brake van / Country overview / India
caption_attribution_description: English: Brake van used by Indian railways.
context_page_description: Brake van and guard's van are terms used mainly in the UK, Australia and India for a railway vehicle equipped with a hand brake which can be applied by the guard. The equivalent North American term is caboose, but a British brake van and a caboose are very different in appearance, because the former usually has only four wheels, while the latter usually has bogies. German railways employed Brakeman's cabins combined into other cars.
  Many British freight trains formerly had no continuous brake so the only available brakes were those on the locomotive and the brake van. Because of this shortage of brake power, the speed was restricted to 25 mph. The brake van was marshalled at the rear of the train so both portions of the train could be brought to a stand in the event of a coupling breaking.
  When freight trains were fitted with continuous braking, brake vans lost their importance, and were discontinued by many railways. However, they still continue on some important railways, such as the Indian Railways, besides the heritage railways.
context_section_description: On Indian Railways, brake vans are still in use to a great extent on freight or goods trains and in some passenger trains. 
  The brake van in the passenger trains (usually the first and last coaches in the train) is a part of a coach and consists of an enclosed room/cabin with two small seats faced opposite to each other, one seat having the writing table for the guard to assist writing and working his train, the opposite seat being a spare. The van also has a small lavatory. A special feature of the passenger brake van is a small dog box where passengers can carry their pets along with them while they travel in the same train in a different coach. The guard generally remains responsible for the water and pet food while the train is moving, and there are features to the dog box to allow the same. The brake van also contains a stretcher, an emergency train lighting box, and a stand to hold the lamp signal during the night. The vacuum or air pressure gauge is hosted in front of the guard's seat with a lever to operate it in case of emergency. The hand brake can be used in case of high emergency. The remaining part of the coach consists of space for carrying parcels and small goods. It also has seating for ladies or for the disabled (wheelchair friendly). 
  The goods brake van is less attractive, is generally the last vehicle on the train, open on both sides, and does not necessarily have interior lighting/lamps, but it does house a small WC lavatory seat for the guards, owing to their long hours on freight trains. The van is less secure and has fewer features than the passenger brake van. Eight-wheeled brake vans were introduced recently to improve the riding comfort for the guards.
caption: Indian goods brake van with eight wheels (BVZI)
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