Corby under Network Southeast 1987-1990: an anomaly?

[frankmoh]

Corby station was part of Network Southeast from 1987 to 1990 when it shut (until 2009).

I have to ask, why the line between Bedford and Kettering wasn't also part of Network Southeast? Yes it's not in the Home Counties, but that didn't stop NSE trains in Kings Lynn or Exeter!

And on a related note, why isn't Corby part of the Network Railcard area even though it was briefly in the NSE area? (still to this day it isn't)


Attached is a screenshot of a 1988 Network Southeast map, showing Bedford, Wellingborough, Kettering and Corby. The line between Bedford and Kettering is shown as being "not part of Network Southeast, but served by some Network trains".

 

[Dr Hoo]

The Corby service was only experimental and supported by the local authority. It could only be operationally supported by some positioning moves associated with Bletchley depot. It was expected that a new theme park would be developed in Corby.
I only used it once and couldn’t get a through ticket. Had to buy one at Kettering booking office and it was issued on a separate machine. I believe that all revenue went direct to the County Council/whoever was subsidising it.

 

[StephenHunter]

The Corby service was only experimental and supported by the local authority. It could only be operationally supported by some positioning moves associated with Bletchley depot. It was expected that a new theme park would be developed in Corby.

BBC News - The 1980s 'British Disneyland' near Corby that never happened - BBC News

A new Universal resort near Bedford is due to open in 2031, creating 28,000 jobs and attracting 8.5 million visitors a year.

But more than 40 years ago, a similar vision was announced just outside Corby, Northamptonshire.

Called WonderWorld, the ambitious £346m project promised a British answer to Disney – complete with themed villages, hotels, and rides designed by Monty Python's Terry Gilliam. But it never opened.

The place would have needed a lot of rail infrastructure to work. Including probably electric wires, which were only as far as Bedford at the time.

 

[The exile]

Would imagine that it was one of those anomalies that weren’t worth ironing out while the service remained experimental. NSE resources were the obvious things to use (and London was the likely destination for anyone travelling beyond Kettering), but the main line service south from Kettering was almost entirely provided by InterCity.

 

[Djgr]

The Corby service was only experimental and supported by the local authority. It could only be operationally supported by some positioning moves associated with Bletchley depot. It was expected that a new theme park would be developed in Corby.
I only used it once and couldn’t get a through ticket. Had to buy one at Kettering booking office and it was issued on a separate machine. I believe that all revenue went direct to the County Council/whoever was subsidising it.

My distant memory of this was that the whole operation was very basic!

Still at least they made it happen, unlike Oxford-Milton Keynes.