ON/OFF Indicators

[Matt Taylor]

On a recent trip to Norfolk I was a little bemused to see an 'ON' indicator, are these common in some areas as I have not seen anything other than 'OFF' indicators before, and to be honest it seems like a good start along the route to a SPAD.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/40172673@N03/9862294514/in/set-72157635468186016

This was at Great Yarmouth, there was one on each platform with both associated starter (semaphore) signals at danger.

 

[Eagle]

Supposedly the ON indicators (which used to be common throughout Britain) were discontinued in the 1940s as a wartime economy. So that gives you an idea as to how old it is.

 

[156441]

You picture shows the ON indication as having a red background? Did the off indicator show in a green colour?

 

[TheEdge]

You picture shows the ON indication as having a red background? Did the off indicator show in a green colour?

No. Its just the age/colour of the bulb.

Platforms 2, 3 and 4 at Yarmouth all have one all of which display ON and OFF. That looks like it might be the one on platform 4 which looks a different colour, lesser used platform so older bulb probably. The one on 2 is white.

Not seen another one around, although these are the only ones attached to a semaphore.

 

[Railsigns]

There are "On"/"Off" indicators at stations on the Met. This one (which looks more modern than most of the others) is at Amersham:

 

[Rapidash]

Think there's some at Exeter Central as well.

 

[Railsigns]

ON indicators (which used to be common throughout Britain)

Were they? The evidence I've gathered seems to point to both "On" and "Off" indicators being pretty much confined to the Southern Railway / Southern Region until early BR years. For instance, the resignalling at York in 1951 had included equivalent indicators in the form of a green light, normally unlit, as was formerly used by the LNER and LMS. The 1952 resignalling of London Euston included stencil "Off" indicators, one of the earliest mentions I've seen outside of the Southern Region.