RCHS Chronology of Modern Transport in the British Isles 1945–2015 Introduction This chronology is intended to set out some of the more significant events in the recent history of transport and communication, with particular reference to public transport, in the British Isles since the end of 1944. It cannot hope to cover the closure or opening of every branch railway or canal, the sale of every bus company, nor the coming and going of every pertinent office holder. The hope is that it does contain details of the principal legislative and organisational changes affecting transport – in particular the shifts between private and public ownership which have characterised the industry within this period – together with some notable ‘firsts’, ‘lasts’ and other significant events, especially those which exhibit trends. A very few overseas events are included (in italics), either because they had a British relationship, or for comparative purposes. Conventions Dates are, where appropriate, the first or last occasion on which an ordinary member of the public could make full use of the facility: official and partial openings on different dates are in general confined to parentheses; and ‘closed with effect from’ (wef) dates are quoted only where the actual last day of service has not been certainly established. Dates assigned to statutes are those of assent unless stated otherwise. ‘First’, ‘last’ or similar qualifiers mean ‘in Britain’ unless otherwise indicated. ‘Commercial’ is used, rather loosely, as a qualifier to exclude experimental, enthusiast, heritage, leisure or similar operations. Forms of name are those in use at the date of the event. An asterisk indicates an item preserved today. Acknowledgements This chronology has been assembled over a number of years from a large variety of published sources of differing reliability, originally for the compiler’s reference only, and inevitably reflects some of his personal interests and idiosyncrasies. He is consequently grateful to those who offered comments following draft publication of a much shorter version in the Railway & Canal Historical Society’s Modern Transport Group Co-ordinating Newsletter and is still glad to receive amending or additional information. Matthew Searle 1944 1944 Nov - L.T.C. Rolt’s Narrow Boat published (by Eyre & Spottiswoode). 1944 Nov - Most suspended local bus services reinstated (except on Sundays). 1944 Nov 5 SR Bermondsey bridge destroyed by V-2 rocket; services resume over temporary replacement Nov 14. 1944 Nov 13 Railway Air Services resumes flights from London with reinstatement of Croydon–Liverpool service, using de Havilland DH86. 1944 Dec 14 GSR Straboe accident: night mail collides in rear with goods stationary for fire cleaning (1 postal worker killed; only fatal accident in GSR’s history). 1944 Dec 21 London Midland & Scottish Railway (Canals) Act authorises closure to navigation of 150 miles (240 km) of waterways: Ulverston, Coalport and Shrewsbury Canals, Montgomery and Leek branches, most of Llangollen branch (but pleasure boats permitted above Chirk) and parts of Cromford and Ashby Canals; also part of Huddersfield Narrow Canal (including Standedge Tunnel), with part transferred with Huddersfield Broad Canal to Calder & Hebble Navigation. LM&SR Act (same date) authorises continuation for 10 years of supply of surplus water from Shropshire Union Canal to existing customers. 1944 Dec - Union Pacific (US) takes delivery from Alco of the railroad’s last new steam locomotive, class FEF-3 4-8-4 844, which it will never withdraw.* 1945 1945 LNER and LMS begin construction of 16-t all-steel mineral wagons during year. 1945 -- - 7 ft gauge locomotive Prince Albert, derelict at Holyhead Breakwater, scrapped. 1945 Jan 1 Railway staff are conceded 12 days paid holiday. 1945 Jan 1 Córas Iompair Éireann created by amalgamation of Great Southern Railways and Dublin United Transport Co., under terms of Transport Act 1944 (Jun 21). Includes Great Southern Hotels, Royal Canal and 50% share and lease of Fishguard & Rosslare Railway & Harbours Co. 2K miles/3.2K km of railways, 11K road vehicles, 21K+ staff (the largest employer in Ireland) (A.P. (Percy) Reynolds, chairman; E.C. Bredin, general manager until end 1946). All divisions (except road freight) earn an operating profit in the first financial year. 1945 Jan 1 LMS subsidiary Caledonian Steam Packet Co. Ltd takes over operation of Kyleakin ferry from MacBraynes. 1945 Jan 1 Brighton, Hove & District Transport introduces trolleybuses (stored since 1939), the last system to open in England. 1945 Jan 10 Belfast & Co. Down Railway Ballymacarrett Junction accident, 7.50 am: propelled motor train working under ‘stop and proceed’ regulations collides in rear with stationary workmen’s service in fog (23 killed). 1945 Jan 11 LNER introduces prototype new design of passenger coach into service. 1945 Jan 31 Admiralty returns Dover workshops (requisitioned 1 Jul 1940) to SR. 1945 Feb 4 LNER King’s Cross accident: 17-coach train stalls in tunnel and runs back (2 killed, one being automobile engineer Cecil Kimber). 1945 Mar - Ian Allan Locospotters’ Club set up. 1945 Mar - Viscount Portal succeeds Charles J. Hambro as GWR chairman. 1945 Mar 7 Deptford bombing, 03.20: V2 rocket destroys Folkestone Gardens SR railwaymen’s flats, New Cross (51 killed). 1945 Mar 16 Last commercial craft navigates to Driffield, keel Driffield. 1945 Mar 17–18 Landing Craft Carrier HMS Daffodil (former LNER Train Ferry No. 3) mined and sunk off Dieppe. 1945 Apr - Charles Cock, an Australian electrical engineer working in Australia, succeeds Alfred Raworth as SR chief electrical engineer. 1945 Apr 9 Railway Air Services/Scottish Airways begin Glasgow (Renfrew)–Croydon service, using de Havilland DH89 G-AGLP. 1945 Apr 11 Volkswagen works (badly damaged by bombing) comes under control of Allies. 1945 Apr 23 LMS officially closes North London line between Dalston Junction and Poplar to passengers (service suspended from 15 May 1944). 1945 Apr 24 Coast Lines’ armed tramp SS Monmouth Coast of Liverpool (1731 tg; built at Irvine, 1924) bound for home with barytes is torpedoed by U-1305 80 miles (129 km) out of Sligo and sunk, the last British-owned merchant ship lost to German action (16 killed; one survivor). 1945 Apr 25 Blackout restrictions for transport vehicles lifted (outside coastal areas). 1945 May 4 Snowdon Mountain Railway (2 ft 7½ in./800 mm gauge, Abt rack), closed to regular tourist traffic since 1943, reopens. 1945 May 6 London Underground stations last available as air raid shelters. 1945 May 7 SR rolls out first Bulleid light Pacific locomotive 21C101 Exeter at Brighton Works. 1945 May 7 Canadian Government freighter SS Avondale Park of Montreal (2872 tg; built in Nova Scotia, 1944) on charter to Ministry of War Transport in convoy from Hull to Belfast via Methil is torpedoed by U-2336 (after U-boats had been ordered to surrender) off the Firth of Forth and sunk, the last British-flagged merchant ship lost to German action (2 killed). 1945 May 8 VE Day public holiday, at two days’ notice (no railway freight runs). 1945 May 12 Rev. W.V. Awdry’s first children’s book The Three Railway Engines is published (by Edmund Ward of Leicester). 1945 May 12 SHMD Board runs its last trams. 1945 May 12 Bus services resume in Jersey and (about this date) Guernsey following liberation of the Channel Islands. Those on Alderney do not resume until 1948. 1945 May 12 Churchill Barriers on Orkney (begun Apr 1941, completed Sep 1944; Sir Arthur Whitaker, Admiralty engineer) officially opened. 1945 May 27 Narrow Gauge Railways Ltd reopen Ravenglass & Eskdale Railway (15 in./381 mm gauge), closed to passengers since 1939, to tourist traffic, initially using internal combustion locomotives. 1945 May 30 Contractors (Manchester) Ltd, heavy hauliers, established by Edward Beck. 1945 Jun 1 Cross-country express coach services reinstated. 1945 Jun 1 Private motorists granted basic petrol ration of 5 gall (20 l)/month. 1945 Jun 12 Bus operators permitted to increase their weekly mileage by 10%. 1945 Jun 21 Jersey Airways resumes Croydon–Channel Islands service, using de Havilland DH89s, initially on loan from Railway Air Services. 1945 Jun 25 SR resumes sailings to Channel Islands. 1945 Jun 28 Coach operators permitted to resume excursions and private hire up to 70 miles. 1945 Jun 30 Hull Corporation runs its last trams. 1945 Jul 3 New boiler for Festiniog Railway 0-4-0ST Prince despatched; first operated in service 3 Aug 1955. 1945 Jul 5–26 General Election leading to Labour government with substantial majority. Labour party manifesto Let Us Face the Future commits to public ownership and co-ordination of inland transport (Alfred Barnes (Co-op), Minister of (War) Transport, 3 Aug 1945–26 Oct 1951). 1945 Jul 5 Ure Bridge on A1 at Boroughbridge collapses under Pickfords heavy haulage consist. 1945 Jul 6 CIÉ resumes Friday passenger trains. 1945 Jul 16 Restoration of regular steamers to Waterford (suspended 14 Jan 1944). 1945 Jul 21 LMS Ecclefechan accident: express collides with goods following colour-light signal passed at danger (2 footplatemen killed). 1945 Jul 23 GWR reopens Vale of Rheidol Railway (2 ft/60 cm gauge), closed since 1939, to weekday tourist traffic. 1945 Aug 6 USAAF B-29 Superfortress Enola Gay* drops atomic bomb ‘Little Boy’ on Hiroshima (76K killed on this day). 1945 Aug 12? Robert Aickman and L.T.C. Rolt first meet, on NB Cressy at Tardebigge. 1945 Aug 13 GWR places first County class 4-6-0 into traffic (F.W. Hawksworth). 1945 Aug 15 VJ Day public holiday, at one hour’s notice. Last service on RAF Calshot Spit railway (2 ft/60 cm gauge, steam worked). 1945 Aug 15 CIÉ resumes Wednesday passenger trains, giving a Monday–Saturday service. 1945 Aug 30? Trades Union Congress publishes The Public Operation of Transport proposing a National Transport Authority.