The Railway: British Track Since 1804

Andrew Dow

tet 2014 · Wharncliffe

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“A comprehensive and detailed history the railway and development from tram road to the modern era. . . . A must read” (The Newcomen Society Western Courier).

Never before has a comprehensive history been written of the track used by railways of all gauges, tramways, and cliff railways, in Great Britain. And yet it was the development of track, every bit as much as the development of the locomotive, that has allowed our railways to provide an extraordinarily wide range of services. Without the track of today, with its laser-guided maintenance machines, the TGV and the Eurostar could not cruise smoothly at 272 feet per second, nor could 2,000-ton freight trains carry a wide range of materials, or suburban railways, over and under the ground, serve our great cities in a way that roads never could.

Andrew Dows account of the development of track, involving deep research in the papers of professional institutions as well as rare books, company records and personal accounts, paints a vivid picture of development from primitive beginnings to modernity.

The book contains nearly 200 specially-commissioned drawings as well as many photographs of track in its very many forms since the appearance of the steam locomotive in 1804. Included are chapters on electrified railways, and on the development of mechanised maintenance, which revolutionised the world of the platelayer.

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Andrew Dow was born into a railway family. After a first career in aviation, which later resulted in his book Pegasus - The Heart of the Harrier, he spent two years as Head of the National Railway Museum before joining British Railways as the privatisation effort started. He played a key role in the successful management buy-out that created Fastline Track Renewals, and he led the effort that resulted in Fastline acquiring and operating the first continuous-process track renewals machine in the country. He retired in 1999 and has since been writing, primarily on railways. He has also produced a number of DVDs on railway engineering and maintenance. During the course of research for this book he re-catalogued about half of the NRM permanent way collection.