Unique LNWR Operation Practices

[Thomas and Duck Fan]

In regards to operations, did the LNWR have anything they practiced that other railways didn't? Admittedly, I did try searching online, but got no results.

[Compound2632]

Water troughs. The LNWR had water troughs 35 years before any other British railway company and 45 years before they became widespread anywhere else - the first being installed in 1860 on the Chester & Holyhead line, enabling non-stop running of the Irish Mail over those 85 miles. The LNWR quickly installed water troughs on its main lines at roughly 40 mile intervals - closer than other companies were later to adopt. This had several operational consequences including:

• Longer runs between engine changes - e.g. Euston - Crewe and Crewe - Carlisle, both around 150 miles, whereas elsewhere changes were at roughly 100 mile intervals, e.g. Grantham, York, Newcastle on the East Coast route. I think one of the longest runs without engine change elsewhere was on the Midland, 124 miles from St Pancras to Nottingham.
• Smaller tenders - the largest water capacity of a LNWR tender in the 19th century was 2,000 gallons, with 1,500 gallons and 1,800 gallons being the standard sizes, at a time when 2,500 gallons - 3,500 gallons was usual elsewhere; less dead weight to haul, along with lower first cost.

Corridor trains. The LNWR introduced the first corridor dining train, the 2pm Euston - Scotland (and vice-versa) express, in 1892. From 1898 it built large numbers of corridor carriages for general use, far outnumbering the quantities used by any other British company - though to some extent this reflects that it was by a considerable margin the largest company in the passenger business anyway.

 

Self-sufficiency. The LNWR is famous for making everything itself, rather than making use of external contractors - the first Bessemer process steel-making plant was at Crewe Works; the company rolled its own rails and made its own bricks. Perhaps the only significant thing it didn't do was grow its own trees for timber!

 

Enough to be going on with?

[kevinlms]

2 hours ago, Compound2632 said:

 

• Longer runs between engine changes - e.g. Euston - Crewe and Crewe - Carlisle, both around 150 miles, whereas elsewhere changes were at roughly 100 mile intervals, e.g. Grantham, York, Newcastle on the East Coast route. I think one of the longest runs without engine change elsewhere was on the Midland, 124 miles from St Pancras to Nottingham.

 

But York & Newcastle, were convenient places to change locos, as they were effectively the boundaries between the partners of the ECML. Only later did the GNR, NER & NBR realise that big savings were to be made by co-operating.

[Hibelroad]

Indirectly associated with operations, they placed felt pads under rail chairs for smoother running, an early form of foam track underlay. 

[Compound2632]

5 hours ago, kevinlms said:

But York & Newcastle, were convenient places to change locos, as they were effectively the boundaries between the partners of the ECML. Only later did the GNR, NER & NBR realise that big savings were to be made by co-operating.

 

I was suitably vague about period but I was thinking late 19th century. The Great Northern ran into York over North Eastern Metals and the North Eastern into Edinburgh over the North British, except during the latter company's rebellion in 1894. But the agreements for working the East Coast traffic went back to 1855, with the East Coast Joint Stock of carriages dating from 1860 [K. Hoole, The Illustrated History of East Coast Joint Stock (OPC, 1993)].

Edited February 6 by Compound2632

[Wickham Green too]

5 hours ago, Compound2632 said:

... by a considerable margin the largest company in the passenger business anyway. ...

Wasn't it the largest Company of any sort in the world ??!?

[Compound2632]

2 minutes ago, Wickham Green too said:

Wasn't it the largest Company of any sort in the world ??!?

 

The LMS claimed to be "the largest joint stock company in the world" - i.e. the shareholder-owned company with the largest capitalisation. The LNWR had the largest capitalisation of any of the pre-Grouping companies but I'm not sure it made the same claim. It certainly played on being the oldest railway company in the passenger business, by virtue of the Liverpool and Manchester being a constituent of one of its constituents and conveniently ignoring any ad-hoc goings-on in the North East.

[kevinlms]

59 minutes ago, Compound2632 said:

 

The LMS claimed to be "the largest joint stock company in the world" - i.e. the shareholder-owned company with the largest capitalisation. The LNWR had the largest capitalisation of any of the pre-Grouping companies but I'm not sure it made the same claim. It certainly played on being the oldest railway company in the passenger business, by virtue of the Liverpool and Manchester being a constituent of one of its constituents and conveniently ignoring any ad-hoc goings-on in the North East.

But the LNWR did claim to be the 'Premier Line', something it had more than one reason to do so.

 

In 1830 the Liverpool and Manchester Railway opened. This set the pattern for modern railways. It was the world's first inter-city passenger railway and the first to have 'scheduled' services, terminal stations and services as we know them today.

 

From

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_rail_transport_in_Great_Britain

 

At some stage they claimed that their permanent way was the best.

[Compound2632]

45 minutes ago, kevinlms said:

At some stage they claimed that their permanent way was the best.

 

"Dustless tracks"