Only a handful of North American cities have kept their pre-war streetcar networks. Why was …
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Making the Grade (Separation): The Bermondsey Diveunder
In the past we have resisted the temptation to write too much about the Bermondsey Diveunder as work had not really started in earnest and it was very hard to visualise what was planned. With …
Continue readingThe Surprise Contender: Sutton Tramlink
Our look at how Croydon Tramlink is expected to develop by 2030 needs to take a bit of a diversion. In the early 2020s it is proposed to add a new short branch. To understand …
Continue readingThe Light (Rail) Fantastic: A Look At the Croydon Tramlink
We haven’t looked at what is happening in the world of trams, as seen from a London perspective, for a long time now. With work on the ground advancing for the next capacity increase and …
Continue readingA Game Of Zones: Sir Peter Hendy to Leave TfL
To begin with, Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin’s statement on Network Rail in front of Parliament this morning contained no surprises – at least not to those familiar with the works delays and escalating project costs …
Continue readingThird Time Lucky: A Look At The New Sub-Surface Signalling Plan
We have reported previously on the ongoing problems with the resignalling contract for the Subsurface Railway (the Circle, District, Metropolitan and Hammersmith & City lines). The contract is an important one, for it underpins much …
Continue readingBike To The Future Part 3: The Board Meeting That Wasn’t
On Wednesday 4th February 2015 TfL held a board meeting. It was one quite different in nature from most, for in essence there was really only one important item to be discussed: Item 7 – …
Continue readingCrossrail: The End of The Beginning
It is said that one of the problems of Channel Tunnel construction was that the British thought they were building a tunnel that just happened to contain a railway. The French, thinking more realistically, saw …
Continue readingOrange Invades: All Change for London’s New Overground Lines
This weekend saw the addition of 28 new stations to TfL’s hugely successful Overground network. Rail services running from Liverpool Street to Enfield Town, Cheshunt and Chingford in North East London, as well as the …
Continue readingFare Trade: Breaking Down London’s Taxi Debate
“Look. A spot of intellectual honesty is always a good thing.” Says London Mayor Boris Johnson, as murmurs of discontent grow in the visitor gallery. “And the reality is that you’re not just dealing with …
Continue readingEast of Enfield, North of Stratford
At the end of the month London Overground will take over more of north-east London’s railways. It seems timely, therefore, to take a look at the history of the railways in the area. For though …
Continue readingDown Street: The Secret History of a Lost London Station
It was early one autumn evening in 1940, as the Luftwaffe’s bombs fell on London overhead, when Mr G. Cole-Deacon finally got the call. Cole-Deacon, the secretary of the Railway Executive Committee, had half expected …
Continue readingA Study In Sussex Part 8: If You Bridge It They Will Come
In our journey down the Brighton Main Line our last encounter was East Croydon. Instead of continuing southwards we remain at East Croydon and devote an entire article to something that at first glance might …
Continue readingLondon 2050 (Part 5): Peak Tube
According to the London 2050 report’s forecasts, the demand for the Underground will rise by 60% in the next thirty five years. That’s a challenging target to address with additional capacity, given the pressures the …
Continue readingLondon’s Lost Pneumatic Railway: The World’s 2nd Oldest Underground
In the white heat of the Victorian age a number of motive powers seemed set to vie for the future. Steam power? Cable? Both were relatively new technologies whose potential seemed endless. Briefly in the …
Continue readingA Perfect Storm: The Story Behind The London Bridge Delays
We really had been trying to not keep writing about London Bridge. Then, at the beginning of the year, a lot of problems emerged rendering it an apt topic for discussion again. The trouble was …
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