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Inspired by a post in the predictions for 2026 thread: what would the trajectory of the railway have been in the absence of the Covid-19 pandemic? Obviously a lot of this will be wrapped up in politics, so for the sake of argument let's assume a point of divergence in January 2020: the Johnson...

I'm looking into the costs of travel from Preston to Oxford next weekend. It's easy enough to get a bargain priced Advance to New Street, and thence an Open Return to Oxford - but I was surprised to see all Advance fares are marked as "sold out" from New Street on the 12th. Having checked RTT...

I preface this by saying I know the chances of this happening in practice are about zero! However- inspired by some of the threads looking for use for displaced modern EMUs, how possible is it, on a purely practical level, to use a locomotive (I guess cl 68 or 93) to haul an EMU (say class...

Prompted by a discussion on Twitter. You often see comments gently criticising preserved railways for the cleanliness of their steam locomotives, in contrast to the authentic days of BR grime. Indeed, in the colour photos of the end of steam, grime and rust is clearly the rule. However, is...

Born in 1991, my earliest rail memories are of my local lines in West Lancs. I can just about remember loco hauled Club Trains on the Southport line, and more clearly "green stripe" 156s and a plethora of 150 and 142 liveries. I've got a memory that doesn't quite fit though, and I think must...

I seem to remember when visiting grandparents (so before 2013) there being regular semi-fast trains from Lichfield City alongside the stoppers. Does anybody have any timetables from the era?

Just for fun- how would you rank the most to least sensible options for expanding the Merseyrail network? Taking into account political desirability, cost of reinstatement, possible revenue streams, regeneration benefits, and of course general connectivity. Here's my basic list: and I may be...

Is there anything that could conceivably tilt the economic balance back in favour of locomotive hauled workings to at least say 1960s/70s levels? Or are the advantages of multiple units so overwhelming that barring the odd pocket, there'll never be any meaningful return to locos and stock? I'd...

I believe Northern have been offered but turned down GWR's 769 fleet. For me personally that's a shame as I rather like the 769s, but I appreciate this is a niche position! The question is- if Northern received an additional 19 (?) 769 sets, what if any routes would be suitable for bimode...

I am fascinated by the transition era from the steam age railway of the early 1960s to the essentially modern network of the late 1970s. I've seen plenty of threads before about locos: but here's a more niche question. Does anybody know when the first coaching stock (aside from the XP64 rake)...

I'm travelling to London from Preston next Saturday 10th May, returning Sunday 11th. As an enthusiast, I'd like to change in Birmingham on the way down to travel on the 14.43 from Moor Street for some loco-haulage. Is such a journey break acceptable on a standard Off-Peak return? The only...

Just a bit of fun... If any one of these three lost Beeching-era main lines were to be restored, in full, which would have the best chance of achieving even a modicum of commercial success? (Yes, I know none of them is remotely realistic in any sense!)

Is there any reason the Preston-bound platform at Ormskirk has enjoyed a short northward extension?

I realise this isn't going to happen any time soon... However- assuming a line was reinstated with a comparable layout to the actual Copy Pit route (double track, at least hourly service, but no electrification), would a Blackburn-Leeds via Skipton service stand a chance of washing its face...

I've seen this discussed a little as the ultimate nuclear option that could be taken to end strike disputes. How plausible is it, in reality, that the DfT or an operating company could go down this line? Has it been done before? And how dramatic would the impact be on services thereafter...

Today the GCR makes much play of its status as the UK's (world's?) only double track heritage railway. Which got me to wondering- how many of the UK's current preserved railways were once double tracked? A handful, or many of them? I know what's now the ELR certainly was originally double...

Aside from the famous Gresley buffets, how many other pre-nationalisation carriages survived beyond the end of steam? Keeping it to loco hauled coaches to begin with!

I'll prefix this by saying I understand the reasons why Merseyrail operates as it does, with a regular clockface all stations service. So purely in terms of speculation - would it even be possible to timetable semi-fast services, and if so, how could it be achieved and what frequency would need...

I know there are issues with Avanti being reluctant to issue tickets in advance- but when do they generally go on sale? I'm hoping to buy two adult tickets using a Two Together Railcard for travel Preston to London on Saturday 10th December. Advance singles are available, but as yet no return...

If the BR transition era can be considered as running approximately from 1957 up until 1968, which year would it be fair to mark as the real watershed moment where more top flight expresses were operated by diesels than steam locos? Would I be right to say 1962? And for the years prior to...