| | The Great Western & Great Central Joint Railway, together with its northwards extension through Bicester, was the very last main line railway to be opened in these islands. For this reason alone, it should be of interest to the enthusiast, yet, on reflection, it is clear that railway historians have ignored the 'New Line' to Birmingham. Bicester was also the last place in the country to be served by slip coach services. The present monograph was first published in 1978 and it was felt that the time had come for an enlarged edition. There have been many changes since then, the GW&GC route having been extensively modernised by the state-owned British Rail, and then handed over to private companies as a result of the policy of ‘privatisation' that was then being pursued by the Conservative Government. The story of the GW&GC Joint Line is slanted towards the earlier periods though - evidence relating to the planning and construction of the line having survived in profusion. Some of this material has been included in the revised text while, to provide a counter-balance, the 'route' section has been much-expanded, with many further details of the infrastructure at individual stations. Most of this new data has been obtained from plans and documents that are now in private collections. In fact, as far as some locations were concerned, there was an over-abundance of new material - so much so, that the 'route' section has expanded to three lengthy chapters. In the past 50 years railway historians have tended to concentrate on branch lines. The complex infrastructure of the great main lines has been largely ignored, and stations such as Denham, High Wycombe and Bicester North have not received the attention that they deserve. It is hoped that this new edition of The Great Western & Great Central Joint Railway will help to rectify this deficiency. Contents:
- Introduction
- Pre-History and Origins of the Line (1846-1901)
- Construction and Opening
- The First Forty Years (1906-1947)
- The British Railway Era
- The Route from London to Ruislip
- The Route from Ruislip to Princes Risborough
- The route from Princes Risborough to Banbury
- The Branc Lines
- Principal Locomotive Classes used on the GW&GC Joint Line 1906-1988
- Sources and Further Reading
- Index
Continent: Europe
Country: UK | | Tag cloud: bicester birmingham monograph policy denham wycombe deficiency stanley ruislip risborough banbury branc | Tell a friend about this publication  |
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