Travelling Post Office

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British Rail TPO vehicle NSA 80390 on display at Doncaster Works open day on 27th July 2003. This type of vehicle, based on the British Rail Mark 1 coach, was the final design on TPO vehicle used in the United Kingdom.

A Travelling Post Office (TPO) is a type of mail train where the post is sorted en-route.

In the United Kingdom, these trains first started operating in 1838. The trains were operated most recently by Rail Express Systems, and their successor EWS. On 9 January 2004 Royal Mail decided to suspend transporting mail by rail. However, Royal Mail reversed this decision over the Christmas season that year, and began operating some TPO trains with EWS competitor GB Railfreight.

TPOs were equipped with letter boxes so that mail could be posted whilst the train stood at a station. The post-marks from TPOs are valued by philatelists.

TPOs were employed in many British Colonies. The Army Post Office had its own TPOs.

TPO trains are formed of several different types of vehicle. For more information see the following links.

[edit] See also

Railway post office - The term for cars in North American use that served similar functions.
Night Mail - Film and Poem about Travelling Post Office
Great Central Steam Railway - where the Travelling Post Office and Mail Exchange on the Move is recreated