In article , John Youles
URL:mailto:mines.a.pint@localhost wrote:
On Tue, 15 Jul 2003 14:12:07 +0100 in uk.transport.london, Michael
Bell tapped out on the keyboard:


In the 19th century the railway companies made a plan to
have a huge central London station, but Parliament stepped in and
forced them to stop at the edge of the city centre and join them
all using the circle line. It would be a very different London
today if that had not happened. Would it have been better? An
interesting question!.

Michael Bell

Fascinating ! Would you happen to know any books, websites etc. on
the subject please ?

John

I'm afraid I don't know of any books about it that would be
likely to be available today, I learned of it from a history book when
I was at school. A long time ago! You might find references you could
follow up in histories of the Circle line - the Circle line was the
alternative to the Grand Central station - presumably the New York
station of that name was the sucessful implementation of that idea in
New York?

One of Colin Buchanan's books refers to a quite separate idea
of about 1900, put forwards by entrepreneurs, to create two
cross-routes, one East-West, the other North-South, with an overhead
railway for express traffic, a surface tramway underneath it (this
was 1900!) for short-distance traffic and massive property development
along the route, this is where they would recoup their investment. It
was to be simply chopped through the existing built-up area. Once
again Parliament wouldn't allow it, but it may also be that the
promoters didn't have the necessary money. Once again, it would
have made London into a completely different place. To think about
it is almost like a Sci-fi alternative future story. But we live
in the boring old world we have drifted into rather than the
exciting world we might have got into by planning and vision!

Michael Bell