Over the years, London Underground has acquired various types of engineering stock to help with the construction of new lines and maintenance of existing lines. Some of these wagons were inherited from its predecessors, many were built new and some were acquired second-hand from the main-line railways. Several types of specialist wagons have been used, which are described below.

Overview London Underground uses a numbering system comprising the wagon number prefixed with a letter which designates the wagon's type. These are summarised below.

Prefix Type DescriptionBBrake vanManned wagon used for guard's accommodation and for braking purposes. No longer used.BWBallast wagonOpen wagon for transporting track ballastCCranePowerful crane for track laying/lifting and/or recovering de-railed rolling stockDECDiesel-electric craneDHCDiesel-hydraulic craneCMCement mixer wagonSpecialist flat wagon, with a cement mixer. These wagons have been modified and now form part of Tubelines's DISAB ballast sucking machines.CWCable drum wagonA short wagon for transporting cable drums through deep level tunnels. For signal wiringFFlat wagonFlat wagon, for transport of rails or sleepers Now only used in train formation with tampers 771, 772 and 773.FBFlat brakeFlat wagon, with brake van compartment. No longer used.GPGeneral purpose wagonGeneral purpose wagonHDHigh deck wagonto carry a stack of track panels no more than 4 panels high.HWHopper wagonHopper, for transport of fresh ballastJJib carrierSpecialist flat wagon, for carrying the jib of a crane; JCJLEJubilee Line ExtensionThe same as General Purpose wagons (GP), used in the construction of the Jubilee Line Extension. The only difference is that the JLE's wagons have larger handbrake wheels.MWMatch wagonWagons paired with the cement mixer wagons. Now used as GP wagons semi-permanently coupled together.RWRail wagonSpecialist flat wagon, for transport of railsSB"Turbot" ballast wagonSpecialist ballast wagon, that will deliver ballast to the trackbed. Can also be used to transfer plant, used ballast or scrap.TMMTamping machineBallast tamper for packing ballast to make lines more durable. Numbered 771, 772, 773 and 774. 771, 772 and 773 can only be transported through deep-level tunnels in train formation. 774 is for sub-surface lines only.WPWWell wagonSpecialist flat wagon, with lowered central section to enable larger loads to be carried. All have prefix JLE. Commonly known as a 'Low Loader'.LWRTLong Welded Rail TrainUsed for the transportation of pre welded strings of 90m rail. Consists of 4 specially modified Rail Wagons and GP wagon which is configured into the centre of the train.

Brake vans

The London Underground has used various designs of brake van. They were used for the guard's accommodation and for braking purposes (when wagons in the train were not fitted with automatic brakes).

Two brake vans of interest were numbers FB578 and FB579. These were 'flat' brake vans, converted from flat wagons. The conversion consisted of building a small guard's compartment on one end of the flat wagon. Therefore, these wagons could be used for carrying small items, such as sleepers, in addition to their role as a brake van.

Six brake vans numbered B580–5 were built for London Transport by British Railways (BR) at the latter's Ashford Works in the early 1960s. They were built to a design which had been produced for BR since 1950 (BR Diagram 1/506 and 1/507), totalling units, and were the final examples of that design to be constructed.

Stock list Numbers Built Converted Builder Use Notes TLC1 1904 1948 ?/London Transport tunnel line cleaning wagon converted from BW108 TLC2 1893 1948 ?/London Transport tunnel line cleaning wagon converted from BW248 TCC1 1938 1972-77 Metro-Cammell/London Transport DM-A converted from 10226 TCC2 1938 1972-77 London Transport dust extractor car TCC3 1938 1972-77 London Transport heavy refuse car TCC4 1938 1972-77 London Transport dust extractor car TCC5 1938 1972-77 Metro-Cammell/London Transport DM-D converted from 10087 BW4 1897 10-ton ballast wagon BW12 1893 10-ton ballast wagon converted to MW518 BW21 1891 10-ton ballast wagon BW108 1904 10-ton ballast wagon converted to TLC1 BW123 1900 10-ton ballast wagon converted to MW541 BW182 1896 10-ton ballast wagon converted to MW532 BW193 1897 10-ton ballast wagon converted to MW540 BW203 1897 10-ton ballast wagon converted to MW531 BW214 1897 10-ton ballast wagon BW245 1897 10-ton ballast wagon BW248 1893 10-ton ballast wagon converted to TLC2 HW201-HW222 1981 WH Davis 30-ton bogie hopper wagon SB231-SB290 1982-88 1995 ?/ABB turbot wagon F303 1907 15-ton bogie flat wagon F304-F306 1964 10-ton 4-wheel flat wagon F308-F309 1925 flat wagon converted to JC688/J689 F310-F315 1931 30-ton bogie flat wagon F310 converted to J691 F316-F326 1935 30-ton bogie flat wagon F327 1935 flat wagon converted to B578 F328-F329 1935 10-ton 4-wheel flat wagon F330 1935 flat wagon converted to B579 F331-F340 1937 30-ton bogie flat wagon F341-F371 1951 Gloucester Railway Carriage & Wagon Company 30-ton bogie flat wagon F355 permanently coupled with F351 F372-F375 1956 30-ton bogie flat wagon F376-F377 1959 30-ton bogie flat wagon F378-F383 1959 30-ton bogie flat wagon F384-F391 1965 30-ton bogie flat wagon F392-F398 1965-66 Ashford Works 30-ton bogie flat wagon HW400-HW406 1935 20-ton hopper wagon HW407-HW411 1938 20-ton hopper wagon HW412-HW434 1951 20-ton hopper wagon HW435-HW437 1965 20-ton hopper wagon RW454-RW459 1931 20-ton rail wagon RW460-RW465 1935 20-ton rail wagon RW466-RW475 1937 20-ton rail wagon RW476-RW487 1950 20-ton rail wagon RW48-8RW489 1951 20-ton rail wagon RW490-RW494 1958 Gloucester Railway Carriage & Wagon Company 20-ton rail wagon RW495-RW506 1965 Ashford Works 20-ton rail wagon MW518 1893 10-ton tube match wagon converted from BW12 MW531 1897 10-ton tube match wagon converted from BW203 MW532 1896 10-ton tube match wagon converted from BW182 MW540 1897 10-ton surface match wagon converted from BW193 MW541 1900 10-ton surface match wagon converted from BW123 B555-B560 1935 Gloucester Railway Carriage & Wagon Company 20-ton brake van B578-B579 1935 18-ton brake van converted from F327/F330 B580-B585 1962 Ashford Works 20-ton brake van C605 1925 Grafton Engineering Company steam crane C606 1931 Ransome & Rapier steam crane C616 1939 Butler & Company steam crane DEC617 1955 Taylor & Hubbard diesel-electric crane DEC618 1956 Taylor & Hubbard diesel-electric crane C620 1926 Thomas Smith & Sons steam crane C621 1935 Thomas Smith & Sons steam crane DEC622 1964 Taylor & Hubbard diesel-electric crane C623 1982 Cowans Sheldon 7.5-ton diesel crane C624-C626 1984 Cowans Sheldon 7.5-ton diesel crane DHC627 1986 Cowans Sheldon 10-ton twin-jib diesel crane DHC628 1993 Cowans Sheldon 10-ton twin-jib diesel crane G662 1906 1934 Metropolitan Amalgamated Railway Carriage & Wagon Company/London Transport surface gauging car G663 1931 1963 Birmingham Railway Carriage & Wagon Company/London Transport tube gauging car converted from pre-1938 trailer 7131 TRC666 1973 1987 Metro-Cammell/London Transport track recording car converted from 514 J683 1937 1975 ?/London Transport jib carrier converted from WPW1001 J684 1931 jib carrier JC688 1925 jib carrier converted from F308 J689 1925 jib carrier converted from F309 J691 1931 jib carrier converted from F312 TW730 1932 tank wagon PBT761-PBT763 1966 Plasser & Theurer ballast tamping machine PTL764 1973 Plasser & Theurer lining machine SC765 1975 Plasser & Theurer ballast tamping machine TMM771-TMM773 1980 Plasser & Theurer track maintenance machine TMM774 2007 Plasser & Theurer track maintenance machine TMM775-TMM776 2016 Matisa track maintenance machine Type B45 UE RG802 1923 1956 Metro-Cammell/London Transport tube gauging car converted from pre-1938 trailer 75241; originally control trailer 5241 RG803 1923 1956 Metro-Cammell/London Transport tube gauging car converted from pre-1938 trailer 75245; originally control trailer 5245 RW801-RW826 1986 Procor Engineering 20-ton rail wagon PC850-PC851 1931 1965 Birmingham Railway Carriage & Wagon Company/London Transport personnel carrier converted from pre-1938 trailer 7061/7063 PC852 1931 1966 Birmingham Railway Carriage & Wagon Company/London Transport personnel carrier converted from pre-1938 trailer 7080 PC854 1931 1966 Gloucester Railway Carriage & Wagon Company/London Transport personnel carrier converted from pre-1938 trailer 7158 PC855 1931 1966 Birmingham Railway Carriage & Wagon Company/London Transport personnel carrier converted from pre-1938 trailer 7071 PC856 1927 1972 Metro Cammell Weymann/London Transport personnel carrier converted from pre-1938 trailer 70518 HD871-HD876 1987 Procor Engineering 40-ton high-deck wagon GP901-GP941 1985 Procor Engineering 30-ton general purpose wagon CM950-CM955 1985 Procor Engineering cement mixer MW956-MW960 1985 Procor Engineering match wagon 990 ballast hopper Docklands Light Railway (DLR); originally numbered 100 992 CT30 crane DLR; originally numbered 92 993 battery locomotive DLR; originally numbered 93 994 GEC-Alsthom diesel locomotive DLR; originally numbered 94 995 Ruston diesel locomotive DLR; originally numbered 95 996 flat wagon DLR; originally numbered 96 997 Freightliner flat wagon DLR; originally numbered 97 998 Freightliner 3-plank wagon DLR; originally numbered 98 999 Freightliner flat wagon DLR; originally numbered 99 WPW1000 1937 diesel generator wagon generator removed CW1050-CW1052 1940 cable drum wagon CW1053-CW1055 1996 Bombardier cable well wagon 98401 1988 Permaquip track maintenance machine acquired from Network SouthEast (W&C), 1994 JLE1-JLE15 1994 Bombardier general purpose wagon transferred from Jubilee Line Extension (JLE) JLE16-JLE19 1994 Bombardier bogie well wagon transferred from JLE JLE20-JLE23 1994 Bombardier 4-wheel cable drum wagon transferred from JLE All data from London Underground Rolling Stock, 1st through 15th editions.

Preserved units