On the running line
This is GWR175: a celebration of arguably the best-loved railway
system in the world, which all started off with the passing of a
much-disputed Act of Parliament on 31st August
1835. The succession of locomotives that worked over the
ever-expanding Great Western network were not only beautiful but
were at the cutting edge of locomotive technology. The Great
Western lives on to this day, of course. The route from
Paddington to Bristol still displays all the hallmarks of Brunel's
inspired and superb civil engineering skills. And it still
carries millions of people every year.
Locomotives at GWR175 represent a good cross-section of Great
Western and other Swindon-built locomotives - including a
representative illustrating Brunel's Broad Gauge, the National
Railway Museum's replica of the Gooch 'Iron Duke'. There is
plenty to feast your eye and ears on- with many 'firsts' among the
line-up!