O TT Flatcar w/ 40′ Trailer

Thetrailer-on-flat-car, or TOFC, concept actually predates the truckingindustry. For a brief period in the 1800s, Long Island farmers couldship their loaded wagons to market on a local railroad. The modern useof railroads to ship loaded trailers began on the Chicago Great WesternRailroad (the “Corn Belt Route”) in 1935 and became widespread in the1950s under the leadership of a former GM executive named Eugene Ryanand early supporters that included the Pennsy, New Haven, Chicago& Eastern Illinois, Burlington, and Southern Pacific railroads.

Originally a large number oftrailers were railroad-owned, and loading and unloading was done”circus-style” by driving the trailers onto a string of flatcars fromone end. A major advance came in the 1960s with the advent of the firstside-lift cranes, dramatically speeding up loading and unloading. Todaythe combination of trailer and container shipments, known collectivelyas intermodal, constitutes the largest class of freight on Americanrailroads.

MTH Premier O Scale freightcars are the perfect complement to any manufacturer’s scaleproportioned O Gauge locomotives. Whether you prefer to purchase carsseparately or assemble a unit train, MTH Premier Rolling Stock has thecars for you in a variety of car types and paint schemes.

Virtually every sturdy car isoffered in two car numbers which makes it even easier than ever tocombine them into a mult-car consist. Many of MTH’s Premier RollingStock offerings can also operate on the tightest O Gauge curves givingthem even more added versatitlity to your layout.