A very strange thing has happened in the past year or so regarding London Underground and the Northern Line – senior managers have actually wanted to talk about it. This comes as quite a surprise. …
Continue readingAuthor: Pedantic of Purley
Tragedy and Turnaround: A History of St Johns Station – Part 2
In part one we recalled the history of St Johns station up to World War II. In that time the the station had already been subject to more change than most stations have in their …
Continue readingAccidents and Islands: A History of St Johns Station – Part 1
Some railway stations are more worthy of a visit for their own sake than others. History, architecture, location, current operation and future plans, all contribute in their own way to give you a reason to explore a particular station. You wouldn’t think the small suburban commuter stop of St Johns was one of these, but in truth it’s a far more interesting station than one might imagine.
Continue readingLight and Breezy London Bridge
Although we have had a lot to say about the Thameslink Programme over the past few months news on the construction front has gone very quiet. There is a small amount of residual work at …
Continue readingThe Beeching Report: Freight and Final Conclusions
In The Beeching Report: 50 Years On we looked at the report itself and its relevance to London as far as passenger traffic was concerned. This was followed up with a look at its impact …
Continue readingThe Beeching Report: The Closure Proposals For London
In our look at the Beeching Report itself we saw plans for a considerable number of railway closures, and looked at the reasoning behind the proposal. For London though, there were actually very few closures …
Continue readingPostscript: Thameslink and The Transport Committee
We really were going to take a break from Thameslink and look at a few completely different topics. We recently covered Thameslink twice – here and here. Then along came the GLA Transport Committee and …
Continue readingThe Beeching Report: 50 Years On
in March 1963 a small book of around 150 pages was published by the British Railways Board. Its official title was The Reshaping of British Railways. Inevitably, however, it became known by the name of the man who headed British Railways at the time. An industrial chemist who had previously headed ICI, he was “on loan” from that organisation with a remit to sort out the problem of the railways. That man was Dr Richard Beeching, and this was “The Beeching Report.”
Continue readingTowards The Start of a New Era on the South London Line?
Late last year we reported on the opening of stage II of the East London Line and also said farewell to the South London Line (SLL). Nowadays it is not often that we see a …
Continue readingWhat’s it all about, Thameslink?
The intention was to hold off from writing another article about Thameslink until the routes involved were finally decided. Our article in 2011 was rather speculative due to lack of decision making and definite information …
Continue readingThameslink: Losing The Plot Whilst Looping the Loop?
In the late 1970s the Chrysler Corporation of America was in deep financial trouble. No-one wanted to buy their cars. Lee Iacocca, a former president of Ford Motors who was fired when he fell out …
Continue readingThe Past and Future of the Bromley North Branch
The branch line from Grove Park to Bromley North is only one and a half miles long. It has but two stations (excluding Grove Park itself) and those two are ridiculously close to each other. …
Continue readingTanners Hill Flydown – Part 2
In Part 1 of this series we saw how and why the Tanners Hill Flydown came into existence. We also reported on the apparent need to double it in advance of enhanced Thameslink services, and …
Continue readingTanners Hill Flydown – Part 1
Our original plan was to write a piece on St Johns station. This would conclude with a short section on the work carried out over the Christmas holidays on the Tanners Hill Flydown. Like many …
Continue readingOur Little List: Merry Christmas From LR
Now that Christmas has finally arrived it is time to lighten up a bit. We could have provided something related to a pantomime but between the IEP and their process for franchising the West Coast …
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