Boxcar A.15858
This open freight wagon was in use in West Flanders between 1914 and 1982, more specifically on the Coast and on the Yser Front. After being taken out of service, the wagon started a tour along the Diegem depot, the Brussels tram museum in Sint-Pieters-Woluwe and finally the storage space of that museum in the Leopold Tunnel in Laken. The wagon was finally purchased in 2017 by the heritage association TTO-Noordzee with a view to celebrating the end of the First World War and the role of freight transport by tram during the war.
The 'A' in the numbering indicates that the tram was built for metre gauge. The Buurtspoorwegen network was largely built on metre gauge. From 1885 until after the First World War, the lines in the north of the province of Antwerp – connecting to the Dutch tram network – had a track gauge of 1067 mm (Cape gauge) (1067 mm); the NMVB also had a few lines on standard gauge (track gauge 1435 mm). Carriages on Cape gauge were given a letter B before their carriage number, those on standard gauge the letter C.
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Year of construction: 1914
Constructor: Ateliers de la Senne
Series: A 15839- A 15878
Braking: Handbrake
Empty weight: 3.75 tons
Sources: https://www.150jaartram.be and https://tramsite-schepdaal.be
