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Calthrop

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Peterthegreat said:
Indeed it was. The railway ran from Liege to Cologne via Aachen (which by then was in the German Confederation).
Please be so kind and set the next question.
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I don't altogether feel that I deserve the honour -- became a matter of thinking up "possibles" one by one (as with me and Belgium-and-whatever); statistically, in the end someone would happen to be right...

However; and as Belgium has "come into the frame" -- I like stuff about rail gauges. Question concerns Belgium's at one time very extensive country-wide light railways (Societe Nationale des Chemins de Fer Vicinaux / Nationale Maatschappij voor Buurtspoorwegen), complementing the State "real" rail system -- only a very small proportion of the one-time light-rail kilometrage, is still in any way active today. These lines, usually known for brevity as the "Vicinaux": were originally on three different gauges. The overwhelming majority, were on gauge 1; a few here and there, were on gauge 2; and long ago, some in a particular corner of the country were on gauge 3 -- these converted to gauge 1, long ago. Please identify the respective gauges.
 
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Peterthegreat

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Calthrop said:
I don't altogether feel that I deserve the honour -- became a matter of thinking up "possibles" one by one (as with me and Belgium-and-whatever); statistically, in the end someone would happen to be right...

However; and as Belgium has "come into the frame" -- I like stuff about rail gauges. Question concerns Belgium's at one time very extensive country-wide light railways (Societe Nationale des Chemins de Fer Vicinaux / Nationale Maatschappij voor Buurtspoorwegen), complementing the State "real" rail system -- only a very small proportion of the one-time light-rail kilometrage, is still in any way active today. These lines, usually known for brevity as the "Vicinaux": were originally on three different gauges. The overwhelming majority, were on gauge 1; a few here and there, were on gauge 2; and long ago, some in a particular corner of the country were on gauge 3 -- these converted to gauge 1, long ago. Please identify the respective gauges.
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OK. The obvious(?) one is metre.
I think the Antwerpen area may have been built by the British to 3 foot six inches.
I don't know the other one so will have a guess at standard gauge.
 
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Calthrop

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Peterthegreat said:
OK. The obvious(?) one is metre.
I think the Antwerpen area may have been built by the British to 3 foot six inches.
I don't know the other one so will have a guess at standard gauge.
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You're right. The great majority of these lines were indeed metre gauge (1). And many lines in Antwerp province were indeed originally 3' 6" (1067mm) (3) -- not British involvement as such; a lot of light railways in the Netherlands were built to 1067mm, including those just over the Dutch border from Antwerp province -- lines wherein, initially 1067mm to link with the Dutch lines. After much turmoil in the WWI German occupation of Belgium, these Antwerp Prov. lines were rebuilt / converted to metre gauge. The odd section in a few places was -- you've got it right -- standard gauge (2); including a delightful line south of Liege, freight-only for its final few decades, but lasting thus until the mid-1960s, worked to the last by steam tram locos.

Votre tour, Monsieur / Uw deelname, Meneer (or something like that).
 
DerekC

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OK. So which English branch line (long defunct) started as a road, was experimentally converted to a wooden plateway with power from a traction engine, was converted to standard gauge edge rail (the traction engine being fitted with flanged wheels), acquired one (more conventional) steam locomotive and operated as a public railway for 25 years (including a passenger service for a while) before reverting to horse traction and eventually expiring quietly, unlamented and very little remembered.
 
DerekC

DerekC

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Ashley Hill said:
Quainton Road - Brill ?
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Not that one. The Brill line was taken over by the Metropolitan, as I recall, and didn't have a wooden plateway precursor. A bit further north and quite a way east.

Clues which will probably just confuse! The traction engine was built at Swindon and the coaches at Doncaster.
 
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Calthrop

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Stratford & Moreton Tramway, northern bit thereof? -- originally in toto, Moreton-in-Marsh to Stratford-on-Avon: northern part, as per your scenario, @DerekC; southern part became the -- in comparison fairly conventional -- Moreton-in-Marsh to Shipston-on-Stour branch, which I think lasted into the 1950s.


ETA: coaches built at Doncaster (which I'd failed hitherto, to notice) -- not likely, I feel, for Gloucestershire / Warwickshire and definitely GWR territory; but I have no better alternative ideas... and, "further north / quite a way east" -- memo to self, "pay attention, that boy !"
 
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DerekC

DerekC

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Calthrop said:
Stratford & Moreton Tramway, northern bit thereof? -- originally in toto, Moreton-in-Marsh to Stratford-on-Avon: northern part, as per your scenario, @DerekC; southern part became the -- in comparison fairly conventional -- Moreton-in-Marsh to Shipston-on-Stour branch, which I think lasted into the 1950s.


ETA: coaches built at Doncaster (which I'd failed hitherto, to notice) -- not likely, I feel, for Gloucestershire / Warwickshire and definitely GWR territory; but I have no better alternative ideas... and, "further north / quite a way east" -- memo to self, "pay attention, that boy !"
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Not that one either - I don't think it started life as a road, and the trams ran on cast iron (rather than wood) plate rails.

Time for another clue - the GNR refused to operate it - perhaps they didn't want a train in their colours trundling along at the 8mph maximum applied by HMRI for a considerable part of the line!
 
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In 1978 a record company did a tour of the UK with several of its artists that used BR’s exhibition train. What was the company?
 
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