The LNER Encyclopedia

Whilst looking at the 1959 summer GN Main Line Carriage Workings, I found a solitary entry on Saturdays Only for a 5.48 pm Broad Street-Peterborough (arrive 8.26 pm) which was the return working of the 1.23 pm from Peterborough.



It seems an odd time of day for such a working on a Saturday. Even with a five-and-a-half day week the Saturday 'rush hour' would have been at lunchtime.

Can anyone explain this working, please?

I have read before that on Summer Saturdays during the 1950s a number of additional East Coast expresses were booked to run into Broad Street Station because of congestion problems in Kings Cross. I have seen a photo of one of these trains running through Canonbury headed by a B1 4-6-0, how long this carried on for I do not know.

sandwhich wrote:I have read before that on Summer Saturdays during the 1950s a number of additional East Coast expresses were booked to run into Broad Street Station because of congestion problems in Kings Cross. I have seen a photo of one of these trains running through Canonbury headed by a B1 4-6-0, how long this carried on for I do not know.

I thought it might be something along those lines and I have a vague recollection of having read something too but I can't remember where.

There is a photo in David Percival's 'King's Cross Lineside' book of a couple of suburban trains heading for Broad Street on a Saturday with the comment that some trains that ran to King's Cross Mon-Fri did this.

Looking at the rest of the GN Main Line book and the 1958 ECML one, King's Cross was very busy with long-distance trains on Saturdays, even before adding in relief workings not shown in the regular carriage workings.

G'Day Gents

Even into the mid 70's Kings Cross, was a very busy place on Saturdays, I can remember once in the early 70's we ran out of engines, and had to use No 1 shunt to release incoming locos, which is always, a pain in the proverbial ! when you have to drag 12 coaches, right across the station throat and into Gasworks tunnel, it also happened again in 75-76,

manna

manna wrote:G'Day Gents

Even into the mid 70's Kings Cross, was a very busy place on Saturdays, I can remember once in the early 70's we ran out of engines, and had to use No 1 shunt to release incoming locos, which is always, a pain in the proverbial ! when you have to drag 12 coaches, right across the station throat and into Gasworks tunnel, it also happened again in 75-76,

manna

Sometimes in needing to resort to doing that, manna, a factor was a shortage of serviceable and appropriate locos, with a few more than expected laid up with defects in 'Passr.Loco', Finsbury Park, or much further north.

robertcwp wrote:

sandwhich wrote:I have read before that on Summer Saturdays during the 1950s a number of additional East Coast expresses were booked to run into Broad Street Station because of congestion problems in Kings Cross. I have seen a photo of one of these trains running through Canonbury headed by a B1 4-6-0, how long this carried on for I do not know.

I thought it might be something along those lines and I have a vague recollection of having read something too but I can't remember where.

There is a photo in David Percival's 'King's Cross Lineside' book of a couple of suburban trains heading for Broad Street on a Saturday with the comment that some trains that ran to King's Cross Mon-Fri did this.

Looking at the rest of the GN Main Line book and the 1958 ECML one, King's Cross was very busy with long-distance trains on Saturdays, even before adding in relief workings not shown in the regular carriage workings.

Morning Robert.

There are a few references to this in the Railway Observers of the period. I don't have them immediately to hand but I do remember notes about Kings Cross congestion and services into Broad Street.

Yes Kings Cross on a summer saturdays was nothing less than a mad house there were seaside specials to Skegness and Scarborough as well as extras to Scotland and parcels trains to deal with, with all main line trains loco hauled and empty stock workings the place on occasions came to a virtual standstill for a short while on a number of occasions, no wonder that Broad Street was used in the 1950s. I also remember the station master in the early 1960s was always there and did help out pushing barrows and crowd control in his bowler hat and pin strips. Those were the days.

Thanks for the further replies. What stands out is that the working I quoted was the only one in the GN Main Line book to go to and from Broad Street.