Great Western Railway ...

Incorporated by Act of Parliament in 1835 and completed just six years later, the Great Western Railway was a stupendous technical achievement. Extending for 118 miles from London to Bristol, this magnificently engineered line spanned Southern England from the Thames to the Bristol Channel, and was regarded as the first link in a chain of railways that would ultimately reach Cornwall, Wales and (via steamship) the south of Ireland. The railway, which is virtually flat and has no appreciable curves, has remained in use to the present day, carrying trains that travel from London to Bristol in just 13/4 hours. This present study examines the line from London to Bristol Temple Meads. Around fifty different locations have been included - some of these are busy traffic centres such as Paddington, Southall and Reading, while others are wayside stations such as Pangbourne, Tilehurst and Wantage Road.

Formed in 1864 by the amalgamation of the Oswestry & Newtown, Newtown & Machynlleth, Llanidloes & Newtown and several other railway companies, Cambrian Railways was the largest independent railway in Wales, with a long, winding, single-track main line that extended from Whitchurch in the east to Aberystwyth and Pwllheli on the Welsh coast. In 1922, the company was amalgamated with the Great Western Railway under the provisions of the Railways Act 1921 and thereafter, the Cambrian line was worked as an integral part of the GWR system. The present-day Cambrian main line runs from Shrewsbury to Pwllheli, a distance of 118¾ miles, and there is an important branch to Aberystwyth. The line, which runs through spectacular mountain and coastal scenery, serves as a vital lifeline for the inhabitants of scattered towns and villages such as Welshpool, Machynlleth and Harlech, while at the same time the sinuous Cambrian route plays an important role in the Welsh tourist industry – a role that is further enhanced by the way in which this highly scenic route provides a convenient link between several of the famous Welsh 'heritage' railways.

The 'North & West Route', which, in recent years, has become known as the 'Welsh Marches Line', extends from Newport to Chester. Historically, this 137-mile route is an amalgam of three distinct railways: the Shrewsbury & Chester Railway, the Shrewsbury & Hereford Railway and the Newport, Abergavenny & Hereford Railway. All three lines came under Great Western control at a relatively early date, although the Shrewsbury & Hereford section became a joint undertaking, which was owned by the GWR and the London & North Western Railway companies. The line runs through attractive and sometimes spectacular scenery via Abergavenny, Pontrilas, Hereford, Leominster, Ludlow, Craven Arms, Shrewsbury and Ruabon, thereby providing a useful transport link between North and South Wales, while some services run north-eastwards from Shrewsbury to Crewe over a former London & North Western line that forms part of a direct link between South Wales and the Manchester conurbation.