The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 08/10/2026When I say small heritage items at stations are good ways of telling railway history, this is what I mean. This is a BRB (Residuary) sign (with logo! who knew) at Leamington Spa. The company had a small but important role in the privatised railway, but has left very little physical evidence behind. 3152
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 07/10/2026The LNER's Balgreen Halt (1934) had a surprisingly large station building for a halt. The LNER/Tyne Commissioners station at Tyne Commission Quay (1928) was rarely photographed in a way that showed much of the station. The aerial view gives that context. 110
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 07/10/2026Away from the Southern, here's the GWR's Cullompton (rebuilt in 1931-32, although in typical GWR manner the architecture looked rather pre-war) and Morris Cowley (1928). 110
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 07/10/2026My very own lost station, the Southern Railway's Hastings of 1931. And although Bromley North (1925) is still with us, this aerial shot shows the now-lost west wing of the station. Exmouth's delightful (and now lost) baroque station building of 1924 can be seen in the third image. 120
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 07/10/2026At St Mary Cray (Southern Railway, 1936), the aerial view helps visualise how the two lost station buildings related to the platforms and approach roads. You can do it with old maps, but it's so much more immediate as an image. 110
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 07/10/2026...let's have a tour. Here is the Southern Railway's Dumpton Park (1926) and its enormous forecourt, and you can also see the rarely photographed top station of the Ramsgate Tunnel Railway (1936) in the same image. (Links in alt text throughout) 120
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 24/09/2026The only image I have been able to find is this one on Facebook (www.facebook.com/photo.php?fb...). The station building is lurking in the background but obscured, and the resolution is low. There must be at least one photo/postcard/local history book showing the front of the station, surely? 041
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 24/09/2026Just on the off-chance... does anyone know of a picture of the front of the station building at Filey Holiday Camp? The National Transport Trust website has this good one of its rear elevation but the web seems to have no good ones of the front. And neither does any book I've ever found. 132
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 17/09/2026This is Trackside Transformation, a book which is the first attempt (as far as I can tell) to fully catalogue British mainline railway station architecture of the Grouping era (1923-47). It's written by me to accompany photographs by @artdecomagpie.bsky.social of all the significant survivors. 1101
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 13/09/2026Further thanks to @rclongauthor.bsky.social for a name sign at Dawlish, Hazel Nicholson for splendid poetry roundels at Coseley (who knew?), and my Dad (won't read this, doesn't do social media) for a magnificent collection of Southern Railway benches at Rye. Photos © their submitters. 051
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 11/09/2026Ah - looks like we have an answer as to whether the GBR livery will include yellow ends on new trains, rather than just legacy yellow-end stock. I’ve never really understood why the default non-yellow option is black though. Feels like an all blue front would have been possible? 5222
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 09/09/2026More Tube Trains in unusual places, this time Elstree, in By Tube Beyond Edgware (2002). Not the fault of a house move, just never quite got round to buying a copy until now. Fascinating diagrams and new artist’s impressions of the stations on the unbuilt Northern line beyond Elstree. 021
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 09/09/2026Hidden London (2019) completely passed me by. I knew the tours of course but seem to have overlooked that there was an accompanying book. It has really striking photographs of places on the Hidden London tours. A beautiful book. 150
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 09/09/2026A chance conversation with @rclongauthor.bsky.social reminded me that I had borrowed his fabulous Ryde Rail (2019) from a library while moving house. Now I have bought a copy at last! Definitive, copiously illustrated, highly recommended to anyone interested in the Isle of Wight’s Tube Trains. 211
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 09/09/2026From about 2017 I had a rather chaotic few years of house moves so my transport bookshelves were mostly in storage. Now I am settled again I am filling some gaps with books I would otherwise have bought at the time. Here then, are some (very) delayed book recommendations… 142
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 26/08/2026...this plaque with cast Regional Railways and Centro logos, on an electrification mast at Lichfield City (submission by, and photo ©, Hazel Nicholson). Electrification, eh? Imagine that. 040
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 21/08/2026Feels like the bridge over Westcourt Drive in Bexhill is a good match but if it was a standard SR bridge abutment design it could have been replicated elsewhere I guess. 310
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 19/08/2026But the station signs in the Metro area display stripes of both red and orange to denote that the station is served by both heavy rail and the Metro, as seen at Cardiff Bay. (Image via commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:20...) 150
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 19/08/2026Originally, red covered all modes e.g. Fflecsi buses were delivered in red (image via commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dy... and the Metro tram-trains have been delivered in red livery too, rather than orange. 130
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 19/08/2026This is a minor point compared to the main thrust of the story, but you can see TfW’s developing modal colour branding here - the coach has a green T (for buses/coaches). Trains are red, Metro is orange. (Original story/image source: media.service.gov.wales/news/new-tai... ) 3110
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 06/08/2026That’s interesting. There is a similar example at West St Leonards. (Photo (c) Paul Wright) stationheritageartefacts.org.uk/artefacts-re... 010
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 04/08/2026There are many British Rail-era plaques commemorating station openings/rebuilds, usually set in #RailAlphabet. But I think this is the first time I've seen their modern equivalent set in (I think) RA3. Photo by @watfordgap.bsky.social, featured on stationheritageartefacts.org.uk/artefacts-re... 1100
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 16/07/2026EMR's Miles must be looking nervously over its shoulder. 010
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 16/07/2026I promise one day to stop going on about GBR branding, but this from today's GBR Anglia announcement is v funny. "The internationally recognised Stansted Express identity will be retained and will transition to GBR Stansted Express". Sure thing. It's all they talk about in Berlin, Madrid, Rome. 1/2 4224
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 02/07/2026Oooh, fun! Can I submit a Far North serif example (or from my POV a little bit further north than me)? 120
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 30/06/2026Four contributors submitted artefacts records for four new stations, with three updated. Love this gate at Shrewsbury and SRA/Wales & Borders sign at Ludlow (both © Hazel Nicholson) and this plaque at Llandrindod Wells (© Brian Blackmore). stationheritageartefacts.org.uk/2026/06/30/l... 121
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 18/06/2026It is, I think, worth remembering that things could always be worse. Before the GBR livery was unveiled I took a look at the logo for Great British Energy to see if it could tell us anything about what the GBR logo might look like. If it had followed the same logic, here's what we could have had... 281
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 10/06/2026Although I agree the full height yellow nose/door does look nicer, Roundel’s original intention for both Railfreight and General (later adapted to Dutch/Civil Engineer) liveries was that the black should extend unbroken across the nose, as the Cl 26 pages in Roundel’s own BR Livery Handbook show. 171
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 09/06/2026You know all about those Art Deco London Underground stations from the 1920s/30s - but what was happening on the mainline railway? Let me tell you all about it... I'm giving a talk to @artdecosocuk.bsky.social on 28 July and it's open to everyone. Tickets at: www.artdecosociety.uk/events-2/ 1185
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 01/06/2026More artefacts records added today to stationheritageartefacts.org.uk, thanks to two contributors. Can't decide between Pitlochry's drinking water fountain (© John Martin) or Church Stretton's weighbridge (© Hazel Nicholson) so here are both. stationheritageartefacts.org.uk/2026/06/01/l... 020
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 31/05/2026Stafford is very under-rated architecturally IMHO (the mileage of others might vary, I appreciate). 2122
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 03/05/2026Absolutely splendid analogue-tech protection device for the overhead wires at Ingatestone station level crossing (I sort of want a too-high lorry to run into it just so I can hear it). Also a quite splendid concrete street light. Further artefacts at: stationheritageartefacts.org.uk/artefacts-re... 072
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 23/04/2026Large weighbridge by Pooley of Birmingham at Droitwich Spa - one of just a handful of survivors on the mainline railway network. To see Droitwich Spa's other heritage artefacts both old and modern, visit: stationheritageartefacts.org.uk/artefacts-re... 020
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 22/04/2026Very lovely L&NWR footbridge plaque surviving at Crewe. To see this and all the other artefacts at the station (at least, all the ones we've found so far), have a look at: stationheritageartefacts.org.uk/artefacts-re... 080
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 15/04/2026Many really interesting station artefacts in recent uploads to www.stationheritageartefacts.org.uk inc - Another Pooley weighbridge, at Driffield (photo © @watfordgap.bsky.social) - A rare surviving Midland Mainline v1 stag at Derby - An old station sign at new Kings Heath (photo © Hazel Nicholson) 160
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 09/04/2026...that name isn't anywhere on the train exteriors, which just have "Metro" on them. So are they, erm, the Liverpool "Metro", as they appear to be to unknowing passengers? But also the new franchised buses will be "Metro" too. (bus image via www.liverpoolcityregion-ca.gov.uk/transport) 120
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 09/04/2026It has been on the trains since the new ones arrived (this pic from 2023). I'm not sure about the logo either, but for a different reason: its introduction makes it very unclear what the local transport modes are actually called. I think the trains are *officially* still Merseyrail, but... 110
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 04/04/2026Ah, Gold Zone. From one of the railway industry's earlier attempts at platform zoning. Given up every time as being more trouble than it's worth. 4200
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 04/04/2026PS - the overlay that had come off was one of those strange Transport typeface signs with turquoise strips. Turqouise was Anglia Railways' colour but I don't remember them using Transport, nor the layout with the strips. East Anglia has always been foreign lands for me though... 130
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 04/04/2026Hello @doublearrow64.bsky.social could I trouble you for an opinion on this? An overlaid sign at Thurston had come off (except for one corner) revealing the older sign underneath. It looked BR-era to me, but also it looked too fresh/dark, surely? Any insights much appreciated. Thanks! 381
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 30/03/2026Today's unexpected #DoubleArrow inspired railway logo is that of community rail volunteers the Barrow Upon Soar Station Adoption Group. [source: barrowuponsoar.org.uk/leisure/barr... 140
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 26/03/2026I’ve been on tour of England for the last 10 days so no recent updates to the Station Heritage Artefacts Collection website (www.stationheritageartefacts.org.uk). Plenty of contributions to add in the next couple of weeks though and I’ve been finding some more of my own, too… 0121
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 25/03/2026I see the passenger assistance buggy at Euston is already in GBR livery. 471
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 25/03/2026I am low-key obsessed with Network Rail’s suite of standard station footbridge designs. So you will appreciate I was torn between being delighted to see the first AVA bridge undergoing final commissioning works at Stowmarket, and being annoyed at not being able to use it. Many nice design touches. 1121
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 25/03/2026Always enjoy a station with two completely different styles of name signage on the same platform. They’re great worked examples of “I suppose that’ll do“ railway rebranding exercises. 290
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 21/03/2026I’m on one of my occasional trips to England. Today I’ve been with @artdecomagpie.bsky.social signing copies of Trackside Transformation for our pre-publication backers. If you are one, thank you and it’s coming soon! If you aren’t, you can buy a copy at: artdecomagpie.bigcartel.com/product/pre-... 062
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 18/03/2026Crewe is in the middle of people changing its signage today (new on the left, old on the right - pic 1). I quite like the look of the old Intercity running-in boards (pic 2). Hopefully it will clear up the muddle of mixed Virgin Trains and Avanti signs (pic 3). cc @doublearrow64.bsky.social 5182
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 03/03/2026Loads of good stuff this time. Also including... Hoses for refilling steam-heated carriages at Nottingham (© @watfordgap.bsky.social) Some RCTS history at Cheltenham Spa (© @jdk653.bsky.social) This smashing surviving 1908 door at Hall Green (© Hazel Nicholson) Drinking fountain at Lancaster (me!) 041
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 26/02/2026The Frame / The Beacon (Abergavenny) / The Ribbon (uncovered version built at Reston) / AVA (Stowmarket) - all easily adapted to a three-platform configuration. All better looking than the current A4A proposal for Luton. All from Network Rail's *existing* suite of standard footbridge models. 1100
The Beauty of Transport @thebeautyoftransport.com · 26/02/2026Look it at now. Ghastly metal staircase and glass boxes plonked on the front, ridiculous Victorian-style clocks, Crittall windows boarded over or rusting away. The plaza in front is one of the most soul-sapping contexts for any railway station in the country... 180