The next station we will visit at as part of our series on London’s major mainline stations will be Farringdon. Before then, though, Crossrail’s presence at Farringdon meant a potential opportunity to get a closer look at some railway infrastructure that is normally inaccessible to the public – the City Widened Lines.
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Crossrail Breaks Ground at Royal Oak
Whilst most of the attention on Thursday was focused on City Hall, out West a major milestone was reached on Crossrail – tunnelling started at Royal Oak. The first of the Crossrail TBMs, “Phyllis” began …
Continue readingCrossrail From the Air
We’ve looked at various elements of London’s transport infrastructure from the air before – now it’s Crossrail’s turn. With the exception of the Connaught Tunnel approach, the photos below broadly divide into tunnelling portals and …
Continue readingIn Pictures: Crossrail’s TBMs at Westbourne Park
We last saw Crossrail’s Tunnel Boring Machines (TBMs) in Germany last year. The first two – out of eight that the project will need in total – are now at New Paddington Yard and will begin tunnelling shortly. It thus seems a good time to take a final look at these, and the Royal Oak Portal itself, before they begin their journey beneath the capital.
Continue readingA Legacy of Iron: Crossrail, Connaught and WW2
On a misty Monday morning in June 2008, eagle-eyed construction workers at an Olympic site in Bromley-by-Bow spotted something unusual in their excavations. It wasn’t long before it was identified – it was a very …
Continue readingIn Pictures: The Crossrail TBMs
A gloomy Monday in Germany this week presented us with a rare opportunity – the chance to see the first (and, as it happened also the second) of Crossrail’s Tunnel Boring Machines (TBMs) close up. …
Continue readingThe Shape of London’s Rail Network – A Peek Into The Future
In our previous post on the shape of the London rail network, we looked back at two key decision points which established our infrastructure legacy: the ring of termini that gave rise to the pattern …
Continue readingA Look at the Crossrail Tunnelling Portal at Royal Oak
Sandwiched between the Westway and the Hammersmith & City Line is Crossrail’s Royal Oak Portal – the point from which central section tunnelling will start in the west and the point at which trains will …
Continue readingPlane to SEN, Then Train From SIA: A Return to Southend
Southend Airport’s new rail station, which we have covered before, finally opened this summer. John Geoghegan, writing in the Echo, reported: Southend Airport’s new £12million rail station will finally open for business on Monday (17th …
Continue readingThe Shape of London’s Rail Network – a Peek Into The Past
The recently published RUS for London and the SE makes it clear that significant new investment is required to meet expected travel demand in the next few decades, and this is in addition to the …
Continue readingStretching the Line: Why We Do (and Don’t) Extend Tube Lines
With Crossrail under construction and extensions to both the Bakerloo and Northern Line being mooted, it seems a pertinent time to provide a brief reminder into some of the whys and wherefores for those less …
Continue readingNorthfleet: Opportunities for Opportunism
Our thanks and copyright acknowledgements to Ian Bancroft for this atmospeheric shot of a Javelin Travelin [Eek! So soon after Proof-Reading Gate- JB] through the arches near Gravesend. A new Crossrail logistics centre is to …
Continue readingCrossrail: Why Branch To Abbey Wood?
As regular readers have no doubt spotted, we are currently missing one final part of our London and South East Route Utilisation Strategy (RUS) roundup – the proposals for West Anglia services into Liverpool Street …
Continue readingFurther Explorations at Old Oak Common
Once synonymous with Kings, Castles, Halls and Manors and now home to the dedicated Heathrow services, Old Oak Common is now the pivotal interchange in many of London’s rail plans. Our thanks and copyright acknowledgements …
Continue readingLooking East to the GEML – Not As Simple As It May First Appear
At first glance, the Great Eastern Main Line out of Liverpool Street would appear to be a doddle in RUS terms. Mentally, this author had expected to write a short paragraph on the lines out …
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