O TT Flatcar w/40′ Trailer

The trailer-on-flat-car, or TOFC, concept actually predates
the trucking industry. For a brief period in the 1800s, Long Island
farmers could ship their loaded wagons to market on a local railroad.
The modern use of railroads to ship loaded trailers began on the
Chicago Great Western Railroad (the “Corn Belt Route”) in 1935 and
became widespread in the 1950s under the leadership of a former GM
executive named Eugene Ryan and early supporters that included the
Pennsy, New Haven, Chicago & Eastern Illinois, Burlington, and
Southern Pacific railroads.

Originally a large number of trailers were railroad-owned, and
loading and unloading was done “circus-style” by driving the trailers
onto a string of flatcars from one end. A major advance came in the
1960s with the advent of the first side-lift cranes, dramatically
speeding up loading and unloading. Today the combination of trailer and
container shipments, known collectively as intermodal, constitutes the
largest class of freight on American railroads.

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

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