Branch Line Britain

Branch Line Britain
Author: Paul Atterbury
Publisher: David & Charles Publishers
Total Pages: 256
Release: 2006
Genre: Railroads
ISBN: 9780715324165

With an array of nostalgic photographs and ephemera, this work celebrates the heritage of branchline and rural Britain. It explores surviving lines, and lines no longer in use, visits preserved lines and travels on those lines long forgotten.

Branch Line Britain

Branch Line Britain
Author: Paul Atterbury
Publisher:
Total Pages: 264
Release: 2004
Genre: Transportation
ISBN:

This lovely book celebrates the heritage of Branchline Britain. It explores surviving lines, and lines no longer in use, visits preserved lines and travels on those lines long forgotten. It is both a practical guide and a look back at the lost golden age of steam. Branchline Britain takes you on a bygone journey from the South West up to the North of the British Isles. Special features along the way focus on unique parts of our railway hertiage including railway vehicles, transporting livestock, branchline staff and stations and trainspotters. The book contains an impressive array of nostalgic photographs, ephemera and memorabilia, many from the author's own, previously unpublished, collection.

Branch Line Britain

Branch Line Britain
Author: Paul D Shannon
Publisher: Pen and Sword
Total Pages: 254
Release: 2023-12-30
Genre: Transportation
ISBN: 1399089919

This book examines in words and pictures the network of British branch lines and other secondary routes that survived the mass closures of the 1960s. While nearly 4,000 route miles were lost between 1963 and 1970, the cuts were less severe than they might have been. Some lines were reprieved because of their social importance, even though they would never pay their way in purely commercial terms. They included some lengthy rural routes, such as those serving the Far North of Scotland, Central Wales and the Cumbrian Coast, as well as some urban backwaters such as Romford to Upminster and the St Albans Abbey branch. As the 1970s progressed, closures became scarce, but cost-cutting measures included the singling of some lines as well as scaled-down stations and simplified signalling. Yet even today, some pockets of traditional operation survive. Mechanical signal boxes still control many hundreds of miles across the network, in areas as diverse as West Cornwall, East Lincolnshire and South West Scotland. This book also celebrates several reopened and new lines, ranging from the major Borders Railway project in Scotland to the Stansted Airport and Barking Riverside branches in South East England - making the point that the branch line concept is far from dead.

Mapping Britain's Lost Branch Lines

Mapping Britain's Lost Branch Lines
Author: Paul Atterbury
Publisher:
Total Pages: 256
Release: 2013
Genre: Railroads
ISBN: 9781446302835

Today there is a nostalgia for the golden age of the railways, a period usually defined as the first half of the 20th century. Steam was king, and Britain still enjoyed a remarkably comprehensive railway network, a network whose tentacles connected towns,

Branch Line Britain

Branch Line Britain
Author: Paul D Shannon
Publisher: Pen and Sword
Total Pages: 154
Release: 2023-12-30
Genre: Transportation
ISBN: 1399089935

This book examines in words and pictures the network of British branch lines and other secondary routes that survived the mass closures of the 1960s. While nearly 4,000 route miles were lost between 1963 and 1970, the cuts were less severe than they might have been. Some lines were reprieved because of their social importance, even though they would never pay their way in purely commercial terms. They included some lengthy rural routes, such as those serving the Far North of Scotland, Central Wales and the Cumbrian Coast, as well as some urban backwaters such as Romford to Upminster and the St Albans Abbey branch. As the 1970s progressed, closures became scarce, but cost-cutting measures included the singling of some lines as well as scaled-down stations and simplified signalling. Yet even today, some pockets of traditional operation survive. Mechanical signal boxes still control many hundreds of miles across the network, in areas as diverse as West Cornwall, East Lincolnshire and South West Scotland. This book also celebrates several reopened and new lines, ranging from the major Borders Railway project in Scotland to the Stansted Airport and Barking Riverside branches in South East England - making the point that the branch line concept is far from dead.

Scotland's Lost Branch Lines

Scotland's Lost Branch Lines
Author: David Spaven
Publisher: Origin
Total Pages: 449
Release: 2022-05-03
Genre: Transportation
ISBN: 1788857224

The infamous ‘Beeching Axe’ swept away virtually every Scottish branch line in the 1960s. Conventional wisdom viewed these losses as regrettable yet inevitable in an era of growing affluence and rising car ownership. This ground-breaking study of Dr Beeching’s approach to closures has unearthed – from rarely or never previously referenced archive sources – strong evidence of a ‘stitch-up’, ignoring the scope for sensible economies and improvements which would have allowed a significant number of axed routes to survive and prosper. Acclaimed railway historian David Spaven traces the birth, life and eventual death of Scotland’s branch lines through the unique stories of how a dozen routes lost their trains in the 1960s: the lines to Ballachulish, Ballater, Callander, Crail, Crieff /Comrie, Fraserburgh, Kelso, Kilmacolm, Leven, Peebles, Peterhead and St Andrews. He concludes by exploring a potential renaissance of branch lines, propelled by concerns over road congestion, vehicle pollution and the climate emergency.

The Times History of Britain's Railways

The Times History of Britain's Railways
Author: Julian Holland
Publisher: Times Books
Total Pages: 0
Release: 2015
Genre: Railroads
ISBN: 9780008135348

Follow the development, decline and later revival of Britain s iconic railways with bestselling railway author Julian Holland. Discover the fascinating history of our remarkable railway heritage through expert commentary, stunning photographs and archive material from a lifetime of railway research."

Railways of Oxford

Railways of Oxford
Author: Laurence Waters
Publisher: Pen and Sword Transport
Total Pages: 393
Release: 2020-09-30
Genre: Transportation
ISBN: 1526740397

An authoritative history of the railways of Oxford and how they transformed the United Kingdom, from the mid-nineteenth century to the twenty-first. In Railways of Oxford, historian Laurence Waters looks at the development of services and operations from Great Western’s opening of the Oxford Railway in 1844 through to the present day. This volume covers the development of the railway locally, including the London and North Western ‘Buckinghamshire Railway’ from Bletchley, together with the five local branch lines. The opening of the Great Western / Great Central joint line in 1900 opened up regional travel across the United Kingdom. During the Second World War, the construction of a new junction at Oxford North created a direct link from the Great Western to the London Midland & Scottish Railway branch to Bletchley and beyond. These two junctions turned Oxford into a major railway center, bringing a considerable increase in both passenger and freight traffic. Today, Oxford is as busy as ever, with passenger services to London operated by Great Western Railway and Chiltern Trains, and by Cross Country Trains the South and the North of England.

Britain's 100 Best Railway Stations

Britain's 100 Best Railway Stations
Author: Simon Jenkins
Publisher: Penguin UK
Total Pages: 290
Release: 2017-09-28
Genre: Travel
ISBN: 0241978998

Discover the architectural gems that are Britain's 100 Best Railway Stations in this Sunday Times top 10 bestseller 'This is a cracker . . . a beautiful book' Chris Evans It is the scene for our hopeful beginnings and our intended ends, and the timeless experiences of coming and going, meeting, greeting and parting. It is an institution with its own rituals and priests, and a long-neglected aspect of Britain's architecture. And yet so little do we look at the railway station. Simon Jenkins has travelled the length and breadth of Great Britain, from Waterloo to Wemyss Bay, Betws-y-Coed to Beverley, to select his hundred best railway stations. Blending his usual insight and authority with his personal reflections and experiences - including his founding the Railway Heritage Trust - the foremost expert on our national heritage deftly reveals the history, geography, design and significance of each of these glories. Beautifully illustrated with colour photographs throughout, this joyous exploration of our social history shows the station's role in the national imagination; champions the engineers, architects and rival companies that made them possible; and tells the story behind the triumphs and follies of these very British creations. These are the marvellous, often undersung places that link our nation, celebrated like never before. 'However spectacular the book's photographs, it's the author's prowess as a phrase-maker that keeps you turning the pages' The Times 'An uplifting exploration of our social history' Guardian

Directory of the Railway Companies of Great Britain

Directory of the Railway Companies of Great Britain
Author: Donald J. Grant
Publisher: Troubador Publishing Ltd
Total Pages: 664
Release: 2017-10-31
Genre: Transportation
ISBN: 1788037685

The Directory of British Railway Companies of Great Britain is a record of all the companies who sought to build a railway in Great Britain, both successful and unsuccessful. The Directory contains a full list of every company that obtained an Act of Parliament for the construction of a railway. If a railway was built without an Act of Parliament and played a part in the greater picture of Great Britain’s railway system, it is also included, which gives a fascinating glimpse into Great Britain’s colourful public transportation history. Readers will learn about each railway’s origin, opening, route, gauge and growth and its amalgamation with others, and find out which grouping company it finally ended up in. In an interesting additional section, the routes that unfinished railways and railways that never came to fruition would have taken are also included. The Directory of British Railway Companies of Great Britain has been meticulously researched, and as a result includes all railways, built or not, in the Isle of Man, the Channel Islands and Scottish Islands. Also included are brief descriptions of the most pertinent Acts relating to railways in Great Britain, providing readers with an insight into the complicated legal processes involved in the creation of a railway. The Directory of British Railway Companies of Great Britain is an all-in-one, easy to access and invaluable reference source. It will appeal to historians and transportation enthusiasts alike, as well as those who have always wondered how Great Britain’s railways came to be.