Railway General Knowledge.

[xotGD]

I think the fact that nobody has attempted to answer indicates that this was not a very good question.

Shall we move on?

 

[DerekC]

I think the fact that nobody has attempted to answer indicates that this was not a very good question.

On the basis of pure guesswork there would be 14! = 87,178,291,200 possible sequences. Rather less with informed guesswork, but still enough to keep us going for a very long time! Of course it could be researched, but it's a bit laborious.

I suggest that @A S Leib cuts it down to a more manageable number - half a dozen?

 

[A S Leib]

I'm happy for it to go to an open floor.

On the day I was looking, the answer was

Severn Tunnel (132)
Newcastle – Edinburgh (117)
Carlisle – Lockerbie (94)
Chester – Flint (80)
Chester – Wrexham (70)
Chepstow – Lydney (64)
Abergavenny – Hereford (58)
Channel Tunnel (50)
Neston – Hawarden Bridge (41)
Shrewsbury – Wrexham (39)
Carlisle – Dumfries (33)
Dundalk – Newry (30)
Shrewsbury – Welshpool (24)
Knighton – Knucklas (11)

 

[CMS1]

Which 3 stations took the name of the nearby river (think there's just 3 taking the name directly but might be wrong)

 

[RDP]

Walton on Thames, Thames Ditton and Henley on Thames?

 

[CMS1]

These are stations that were named just the river, nothing else

 

[Cowley]

I mean stations with names that are just the river

I’m thinking Looe and Dawlish possibly?

 

[CMS1]

I’m thinking Looe and Dawlish possibly?

No, as those stations were named after the place served, not the river...

 

[Gloster]

I can only think of Trent Junction and Dovey Junction.

 

[CMS1]

These stations are just the river name.... As a clue 2 are closed, 1 remains in London

 

[Ashley Hill]

Trent, Fowey, Usk?

 

[CMS1]

Fowey & Usk were named after the place, but Trent station fits the criteria, and I didn't have that one, well done! The 3 I had were in South London, Suffolk and Lancashire

 

[Peter Mugridge]

Fowey & Usk were named after the place, but Trent station fits the criteria, and I didn't have that one, well done! The 3 I had were in South London, Suffolk and Lancashire

The one in South London has to be Ravensbourne, surely?

 

[DerekC]

Would Orwell be the Suffolk one?

 

[CMS1]

The one in South London has to be Ravensbourne, surely?

Correct! The Ravensbourne is a small river flowing into the Thames at Deptford. It's namesake station is between Beckenham & Bromley, on the Catford Loop line, built in 1892 and survives today served only by Thameslink.

Would Orwell be the Suffolk one?

Correct! Orwell station on the Felixstowe branch took its name from the large river Orwell a mile away, and was built for 1 man & his house, Colonel Tomkins. The station survived until 1959. Today I believe it's a house, which would be interesting with 75mph freight a few metres away day & night....

That's 3 now, unless anyone wants to guess the Lancashire one. It included the word River i.e. River X, and only lasted 11 years.

 

[xotGD]

River Phoenix

 

[CMS1]

The last one I had was 'River Douglas' station. Built by the West Lancashire Railway in 1878 on the Preston-Southport line, it was built next to the river Douglas to connect to a WLR paddle steamer service to Lytham St Annes. This seems to have stopped pretty soon, and the station closed in 1889 and demolished.

Do @Ashley Hill @Peter Mugridge or @DerekC want to sent the next question?

 

[Peter Mugridge]

Do @Ashley Hill @Peter Mugridge or @DerekC want to sent the next question?

I'll pass this time; so Ashley and Derek can decide between them who goes next.

 

[Ashley Hill]

Over to you @DerekC.

 

[DerekC]

Oh, ok! Wasn't expecting that - sorry for the delay.

What rather strange vehicle connected Lucas Aerospace with the Crich Tramway in 1980 and what did it have to do with industrial relations?

 

[Whistler40145]

Testing of a road-rail bus at Crich?

 

[DerekC]

Testing of a road-rail bus at Crich?

That's right - a former Hants & Dorset Bristol LH to be precise. Fitted with a small wheeled railway bogie at the front and a fixed axle at the back. Produced by the Lucas Aerospace Shop Stewards Committee in 1980. Sadly it only made one return trip, derailing in the process - apparently because the railway wheels were to main line profile, not suitable for tramway grooved track.

Your adaptable next step, @Whistler40145

 

[Whistler40145]

What's the busiest railway line in the UK?

 

[A S Leib]

Elizabeth Line / Crossrail?

 

[Whistler40145]

Elizabeth Line / Crossrail?

Correct, your turn

 

[A S Leib]

I'm going to try to think of a question which somebody's likely to get without a lucky guess or brute force this time.

 

[A S Leib]

What do the Kalka – Shimla railway, Budapest line M1, and the Ffestiniog Railway have in common?

 

[Whistler40145]

All have a UNESCO Heritage site?

 

[A S Leib]

All have a UNESCO Heritage site?

Is the thing I was looking for (or being part of one), so it's your turn to look through past and present for a question.

 

[Whistler40145]

Which year was the last steam hauled passenger service from Glasgow Central?