In September 1825, around 600 people squeezed into 21 coal wagons of a steam-powered locomotive and travelled the eight miles between Shildon and Darlington at a top speed of 15mph. More than 10,000 spectators gathered to witness this bone-shaking journey, marking the birth of passenger rail travel and the beginning of 200 years of railway history.
200 years later, the rail sector is gearing up to mark this occasion, with Railway 200, a campaign of events across the country to celebrate the past, present and future of rail. It’s the perfect opportunity to reflect on how rail travel has evolved from an early experiment in steam power to an essential part of our lives, linking people, businesses and nations.
Naturally, the past 200 years have brought tremendous change – mostly change for the better. Fortunately, passengers on a budget no longer have to sit in third class carriages with no roof.
But what’s interesting is that many aspects of rail travel have remained pretty constant too.
Train timetables set the standard
One early innovation which has thankfully stayed with us is railway time. Until the mid-19th century, towns relied on local time set by the sun. Before the railways, it wasn’t a problem if there was a difference of a few minutes between London and Bristol time.
However, once rail travel became more widespread, passengers were confronted with timetables like this one from Great Western Railway in 1844.
“LONDON TIME is kept at all the stations on the railway, which is about 4 minutes earlier than READING time; 5½ minutes before STEVENTON time; 7½ minutes before CIRENCESTER time; 8 minutes before CHIPPENHAM time; 11 minutes before BATH and BRISTOL time; and 14 minutes before BRIDGEWATER time.”
Hardly surprising that passengers were confused and ended up missing their trains.
The solution came in the form of the electric telegraph which was adopted by railway companies in the 1840s to standardise time across the country. Fortunately, we still run on standardised time, and train timetables are as important as they were at the dawn of rail travel.
Thanks to advances in technology, we now not only tell passengers about departure times, we can also alert them to changes and delays, and show them how busy their service is likely to be.
Safety first for passengers and crew
The rail industry has always sought out ways to make the railway safer, and that hasn’t changed. Back in the 1830s people were concerned about how the body would react to travelling at the vast speeds of 30mph, or whether dining cars could cause fatal indigestion.
As the network became faster and busier, the industry continued to find new and better ways to keep passengers and rail workers safe.
In 1840, the first railway inspectors were introduced, and they are now part of the Office of Rail and Road (ORR). The inspectors started investigating accidents and suggesting improvements such as continuous brakes, guidance on boilers to avoid explosions, and rules for emergency evacuation from trains. Accident investigations continue to provide us with insight to keep our railways safe.
Another Victorian invention – Block signalling, is still helping to ensure that a train has time to stop before getting dangerously close to another train, although the technology is now having a digital makeover.
With more train drivers working across the network, rail operators needed a watertight way to communicate safety critical information, and the late notice case which informs drivers of speed restrictions, became a safety staple. These vital safety updates will be even more effective at preventing overspeeding incidents in the future with digital communications.
Rail freight powers the nation
Well before the first passengers boarded the first train service to Darlington, rail freight was instrumental in moving goods and supporting trade. In fact, the wagons carrying those passengers had previously been moving coal from the coalfields of County Durham.
As the rail network grew, it offered the opportunity for a fast and efficient way of transporting the goods and resources that fuelled the industrial revolution.
Times have changed, as have the type of goods transported by train, with a shift away from manufacturing towards fast moving consumer goods and building materials. However, rail freight remains critical to the country’s prosperity.
Today’s businesses are looking for more sustainable solutions than their forebears. With the railways moving more than 15.7 billion tonnes of freight and taking 6.4 million lorries off our congested roads, the country needs rail freight as much, if not more, than it did back in the pioneering days of rail.
Technology can help to keep rail freight working hard in our more complex and congested world, with tools which can accurately analyse network availability and help unlock ‘hidden’ paths on the network.
So, what has changed since 1825? Over the past 200 years of railway progress, the way we live and work has evolved dramatically. We think nothing of travelling distances our 19th century counterparts could hardly have imagined, yet we can talk to someone at the other end of the country or the world without moving from our kitchen table.
The rail industry is constantly adapting to these changes by making rail reliable, easy and streamlined for passengers and the freight sector alike.
What hasn’t changed is the legacy left by those early pioneers in rail, who used all the skills and technology at their disposal to provide people with a punctual, safe and reliable train service.
We are celebrating this milestone year in the rail industry with Railway 200. To find out more about how we are helping to shape the future of rail, visit our rail sector webpage.
