Renewing Britain's Railways: Cumbria to Tyneside

Renewing Britain's Railways: Cumbria to Tyneside

Signal Boxes and Semaphores

The Decline

Publication Date15th November 2016

Book FormatPaperback

pages96

Illustrations180

Height234

Width165

Explores the decline of mechanical signalling in the UK.
Regular Price £15.99 Online Price: £14.39
Availability: In stock
ISBN
9781445656175
Mechanical signal boxes and semaphore signals are the last vestige of Victorian technology still to be found on Britain’s railways. Still surviving against all the odds in a digital era, only a few hundred ‘boxes’ remain in use out of the ten thousand originally built to control train movements across every inch of the network. Sadly, almost all of them are to be abolished within the next decade and replaced by 14 computerised Regional Operating Centres.

The old system is still alive and well throughout a number of locations seemingly lost in time, from the remote Scottish Highlands to the busy Great Western Main Line. The world’s largest ‘box’ at Shrewsbury - containing 180 levers - contrasts with many tiny level crossing cabins in Yorkshire, while single track electric token systems have also remarkably stood the test of time on some secondary routes.

In this book, Gordon D. Webster looks at the last signal boxes and semaphores with a vast selection of photographs, showing the various trains that pass in an intriguing blend of old and new. Included are interior views showing the traditional working environment of the signalman which will also soon be lost forever.
Write Your Own Review
Only registered users can write reviews. Please Sign in or create an account

People Also Bought