Coverings to Station Footbridges

[Dave Cockle]

Looking at old photos of Great Eastern stations it is evident that the corrugated steel coverings were removed from footbridges at some time in the life of the structure.

Does anyone know:-

1. The date when this policy kicked in.

2. The reason why.

I have heard one story that it was to avoid paying rates and another that simply it was to reduce maintenance costs.

[Hatfield Shed]

Whatever the actions elsewhere, one of the few all new stations constructed by the LNER was Welwyn Garden City, and photographs show this station was equipped with a fully covered footbridge from station building to the platforms, at least from very soon after opening in 1925. (I believe the same to be true of the all new Brookmans Park station opened 1926, but have no evidence to support this.)

[Mickey]

Staying on the GN part of the LNER Hatfield station also had a covered footbridge leading from the Up slow line platform across to the Down fast & Down slow lines platforms until the station was completely re-built around 1973-74 when all the original station buildings and roof awnings on the Up & Down line platforms including the covered footbridge along with a barrow crossing underneath the footbridge that crossed the Up slow, Up fast & Down fast lines were all swept away and the station was re-built in a brick & glass modern style as it still is today. The covered footbridge also carried the Hatfield No.1 box Up fast line home signal complete with a white sighting board behind the signal arm until Hatfield No.1 box closed in late May 1973.

Hatfield station looking north towards Hitchin during the 1960s note the covered footbridge-
http://smallford.org/wp-content/uploads ... n-left.jpg

[Pyewipe Junction]

Lincoln Central used to have two footbridges, one of which, at the High Street end, was covered. This footbridge was removed some time after 1975 (does anyone know why and when?), leaving just the uncovered (and less accessible) bridge at the other end.

[65447]

Lincoln Central used to have two footbridges, one of which, at the High Street end, was covered. This footbridge was removed some time after 1975 (does anyone know why and when?), leaving just the uncovered (and less accessible) bridge at the other end.

It was removed in 1990, I was living and working in Lincoln at the time, and I think in conjunction with the updating of the level crossing. The reason given was an unnecessarily high cost for repair or renewal.

The new level crossing mechanism was prone to sticking and quite often queues of pedestrians, cyclist and vehicles would mass outside of the gates. At lunchtime in particular there might be hundreds of pedestrians unable to cross and completely blocking the gates and the roadway.

A new and very expensive replacement has now been opened. Plenty of sources with a quick web search...

[Pyewipe Junction]

Lincoln Central used to have two footbridges, one of which, at the High Street end, was covered. This footbridge was removed some time after 1975 (does anyone know why and when?), leaving just the uncovered (and less accessible) bridge at the other end.

It was removed in 1990, I was living and working in Lincoln at the time, and I think in conjunction with the updating of the level crossing. The reason given was an unnecessarily high cost for repair or renewal.

The new level crossing mechanism was prone to sticking and quite often queues of pedestrians, cyclist and vehicles would mass outside of the gates. At lunchtime in particular there might be hundreds of pedestrians unable to cross and completely blocking the gates and the roadway.

A new and very expensive replacement has now been opened. Plenty of sources with a quick web search...

That isn't the one I was referring to. It joined platforms 5 and 6 (old numbering). You are referring to the footbridge at High Street crossing.

Plenty of sources with a quick web search...

[silverfox]

IIRC Wood Green station footbridge was covered all the way across

However the public footbridge a few yards to the south was open even though it still crossed the station!

[65447]

Lincoln Central used to have two footbridges, one of which, at the High Street end, was covered. This footbridge was removed some time after 1975 (does anyone know why and when?), leaving just the uncovered (and less accessible) bridge at the other end.

It was removed in 1990, I was living and working in Lincoln at the time, and I think in conjunction with the updating of the level crossing. The reason given was an unnecessarily high cost for repair or renewal.

The new level crossing mechanism was prone to sticking and quite often queues of pedestrians, cyclist and vehicles would mass outside of the gates. At lunchtime in particular there might be hundreds of pedestrians unable to cross and completely blocking the gates and the roadway.

A new and very expensive replacement has now been opened. Plenty of sources with a quick web search...

That isn't the one I was referring to. It joined platforms 5 and 6 (old numbering). You are referring to the footbridge at High Street crossing.

Plenty of sources with a quick web search...

You did say at the High Street end...

[Pyewipe Junction]

The footbridge you are referring to was never covered, at least up to 1975. And I doubt it was after then.

[Mickey]

IIRC Wood Green station footbridge was covered all the way across

The Wood Green footbridge was GNR. The enclosed New Southgate & New Barnet footbridges I presume were both GNR and from memory both suffered fire damage (possibly arson?) within a few months of each other around 1974 or 1975?.

The lattice ironwork and covered footbridge at Welwyn Garden City is LNER when the station opened in 1926 with the later additions of hard plastic sheeting being added during the mid 1970s.

[Dave Cockle]

The covered footbridge linking the platforms at Wood Green was built by the GNR in 1890 as part of the station expansion. The footbridge further south was, the original station footbridge, but was altered in 1891 and made into a public footbridge and paid for by the Great Eastern Railway! This was so that passengers arriving at Palace Gates to go to Alexandra Park/Palace would have a shorter route and not have a detour via Buckingham Road bridge.