At the turn of the 20th century the rail network extended to over 23,000 miles, very nearly the circumference of the world - the greatest length it was ever to achieve. Some urban routes had closed and later, hundreds of rural lines and stations succumbed to the Beeching axe. This title shows the network in its heyday before the decline commenced.

The cross-country Ruabon to Barmouth railway was originally built to fulfil the desire of connecting the town of Llangollen with the rest of the rapidly expanding network. The local Victorian promoters received the backing of the Great Western Railway, which had an ambitious plan to reach the Cambrian Coast and tap into the slate quarries around Snowdonia. As time was to prove, the GWR was to be temporarily thwarted by the construction of a branch inland from Barmouth by the rival Cambrian Railway, resulting in an end-on connection between the two railways in the market town of Dolgelly. The route developed into an important artery across rural Wales, bringing in its wake a revolution in agriculture, industry and daily life. Holiday traffic became big business, tapping into the big conurbations of Liverpool, Manchester and Birmingham. The route would ultimately succumb to the Beeching axe during the 1960s, but even this did not go to plan following severe flooding a few weeks prior! Volume One explores the eastern half of the route, encompassing the towns of Ruabon, Llangollen, Corwen and Bala, and a brief introduction to the fundamentals of railway travel. The perfect companion for anyone visiting the preserved Llangollen Railway.

Since 2003 the International Association for the History of Traffic, Transport and Mobility (T2M) has served as a trade-free zone, fostering a new interdisciplinary vitality in the now-flourishing study of the History of Mobility. In its Yearbook, Mobility in History, T2M surveys these developments in the form of a comprehensive state-of-the-art review of research in the field, presenting synopses of recent research, international reviews of research across many countries, thematic reviews, and retrospective assessments of classic works in the area. Mobility in History provides an essential and comprehensive overview of the current situation of Mobility studies. Volume 6 divides its review of recent literature across polemical, theoretical, and geographical categories, and concludes with a section on tourism.

The arrival of the railway was one of the most far reaching events in the history of the Victorian city. The present study, based upon detailed case histories of Britain's five largest cities (London, Birmingham, Glasgow, Manchester and Liverpool), shows how the railways gave Victorian cities their compact shape, influenced topography and character of their central districts, and determines the nature of suburban expansion. This book was first published in 1969.

For over 150 years Britain's railways have relied on a system of semaphore signalling, but by 2020, all semaphore signals and lineside signal boxes will be gone. A Contemporary Perspective on GWR Signalling provides a unique record of the last operational mechanical signalling and infrastructure on Britain's railway network, as it applied to the former Great Western Railway (and lines owned jointly with other companies). It also includes a comprehensive explanation of what mechanical signalling is and how it works. There is detailed coverage of the signal boxes and infrastructure on Network Rail, including routes through Shrewsbury, Hereford, Worcester, Cornwall, Chester and North Warwickshire. Beautifully illustrated with over 400 contemporary images and with detailed information from a 2003-2014 survey, this is an essential resource for anyone with an interest in the traditional signalling systems of railways in Britain.