The Southern Railway (SR) gave the designation CW to the fleet of AC electric multiple units used on the lines to

Coulsdon Coulsdon (, traditionally pronounced ) is a town in south London, England, within the London Borough of Croydon, in the ceremonial county of Greater London since 1965. Prior to this it was part of the historic county of Surrey. History The l ...

and Wallington. They were planned by the

London, Brighton and South Coast Railway The London, Brighton and South Coast Railway (LB&SCR; known also as the Brighton line, the Brighton Railway or the Brighton) was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1846 to 1922. Its territory formed a rough triangle, with London at its ...

but were delayed by the

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

and the

grouping Grouping may refer to: * Muenchian grouping * Principles of grouping * Railways Act 1921, also known as Grouping Act, a reorganisation of the British railway system * Grouping (firearms), the pattern of multiple shots from a sidearm See also ...

and were introduced by the Southern Railway.

Construction

The CW (Coulsdon and Wallington stock) units were built in 1923–1924, as the last electric train stock for use on the

LBSCR The London, Brighton and South Coast Railway (LB&SCR; known also as the Brighton line, the Brighton Railway or the Brighton) was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1846 to 1922. Its territory formed a rough triangle, with London at its ...

AC overhead electrified lines in South London. This stock comprised some hundred carriages, which were used in five-car formations: Driving Trailer

Third Third or 3rd may refer to: Numbers * 3rd, the ordinal form of the cardinal number 3 * , a fraction of one third * 1⁄60 of a ''second'', or 1⁄3600 of a ''minute'' Places * 3rd Street (disambiguation) * Third Avenue (disambiguation) * Hi ...

(DTT) + Driving Trailer Composite (DTC) + Motor Luggage Van (MLV) + Trailer Composite (TC) + Driving Trailer Third (DTT). The stock, built by the Metropolitan Carriage, Wagon and Finance Company at

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the We ...

, was as follows: * 21 Motor Luggage Vans * 60 Driving Trailers * 20 Trailers The Motor Luggage Vans (nicknamed "Milk Vans") each had four

GEC GEC or Gec may refer to: Education * Gedo Education Committee, in Somalia * Glen Eira College, in Caulfield East, Victoria, Australia * Goa Engineering College, India * Government Engineering College (disambiguation) * Guild for Exceptional ...

traction motors. After the replacement of the AC overhead equipment by the 660 V DC third rail system adopted as standard by the SR, the carriages that formed these units were rebuilt accordingly, the Motor Luggage Vans becoming bogie goods train

brake van Brake van and guard's van are terms used mainly in the UK, Ireland, 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 ...

References

* * * SR CW CW London, Brighton and South Coast Railway Train-related introductions in 1925 {{electric-loco-stub