Tag Archives: London

Trafalgar Square Post Office—gone but not forgotten.

Posted on February 24, 2020 by machorne

24th December 2018 was a dark day, even for those used to the seemingly endless stream of announcements about post office closures. It was on this day that Trafalgar Square Post Office last closed its doors to the public. Once … Continue reading →

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The Excitement of Luminous Trains

Posted on August 6, 2019 by machorne

In the fascinating world of railways there has never been a shortage of ideas. Many come from outside the industry and some of them even have practical applications, for which I am sure we are immensely grateful. Most, though, are … Continue reading →

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Prisons and the Metropolitan Railway

Posted on May 1, 2019 by machorne

Whitecross Street Prison My attention was recently drawn to the plaque in the accompanying photograph. Cunningly designed in the style of official commemorative blue plaques, I noted the building so commemorated before realizing the plaque was not official and that … Continue reading →

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McFarlan Moore Lighting and the Central London Railway

Posted on April 28, 2019 by machorne

The name Daniel McFarlan Moore may not be familiar to many people, a shortcoming I shall try to redress. He was a distinguished American electrical engineer and inventor who died in 1936; the circumstances were very unfortunate because he was … Continue reading →

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Automatic Trains on the Hammersmith & City Line (at last)

Posted on March 20, 2019 by machorne

New Signalling as part of the sub-surface lines modernization (updated) On Monday 28 March, I spent a little while at the western end of London’s Hammersmith & City Line watching the new automatic trains doing their business: this was the … Continue reading →

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The latest Underground Diagram: a fallen icon?

Posted on December 28, 2018 by machorne

A new version of the Underground pocket diagram recently appeared, dated December 2018, and this incorporates another new feature which, whether good or not, adds further complexity to a diagram that is now overloaded with information. It is surely time … Continue reading →

Posted in London general interest, London Mayor, London Rail, London Underground | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Britain’s National Railway Museum: Part 3

Posted on September 21, 2017 by machorne

The Government Gets Involved Trouble on the Line I had hoped to cover what I wanted in four parts but owing to new material I thought worth including it will now be five. This part deals with the crisis facing … Continue reading →

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Britain’s National Railway Museum: Part 2

Posted on August 11, 2017 by machorne

The British Transport Museums Introduction In Part 1, I described the origin of the LNER’s railway museum in York. Until well after World War 2 this was the only railway museum in the UK, although there were several other museums … Continue reading →

Posted in British Transport, Heritage Transport, London Underground, Main Line Rail, Road Transport | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

All Change For Oxford Street

Posted on December 21, 2016 by machorne

General On 25th April last, I published a blog about the proposal to pedestrianize Oxford Street in which I cast doubt about the practicability of such a scheme, whether or not it was actually desirable. By ‘practicability’, of course, I … Continue reading →

Posted in London Buses, London general interest, London Mayor, Road Transport | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Scotland Yard Move – a bit more than redecorating.

Posted on April 25, 2015 by machorne

On 21 May 2013 I wrote a few words about Scotland Yard moving back to Scotland Yard, as it were. The move was precipitated by the existing building reaching that stage of its life when over £50m would need to … Continue reading →

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