Uncertain future for TrailerTrain
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• A British design aimed at allowing road and rail use from the same semi-trailer chassis is under severe threat as the company's receivers struggle to find a buyer.
Receiver KPMG Peat Marwick says there is still no buyer for TrailerTrain, although the design's owner, Tiger Rail, went into receivership in February. Peat Marwick's Roger Oldfield says: "There's little interest in TrailerTrain. There are no guarantees that it will be sold."
TrailerTrain is a strengthened semi-trailer chassis which converts into a rail wagon by retracting the air-suspended road bogie and clipping on to the rail bogies. If it is not bought Tiphook will be the only British company providing this kind of equipment.
Tiger Rail failed when its parent company Allied Partners Group went into receivership.
The future of the other components of Tiger Rail — its fleet of rail wagons and a number of freight contracts it held with customers — has now been settled.
CAIB UK, with more than 3,000 rail wagons in the UK, claims to be the largest private company hiring rail wagons. It has bought just under half of Tiger Rail's 800 wagons. It is believed the rest were on lease and have been returned to the leasing companies.
British Rail's Railfreight Distribution has taken on some of Tiger Rail's customers, including English China Clays.