Oxford-Cambridge 1968 Timetable

[IanBanks-Jones]

For reasons I have yet to ascertain, lord Adonis is after a copy of this over on twitter. Has anyone got access to a copy of said doccument?
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Someone has now found one from '62, but I'm sure a later one would be welcomed!

 

[steamybrian]

There wasn't one...!
AFAIK --The last trains ran on Saturday 30th December 1967 and there were no Sunday trains but if there were if would 31st December
The service was effectively withdrawn on 1st January 1968.

 

[IanBanks-Jones]

Okay, what about the '67 timetable?

 

[DarloRich]

I wouldn't mind seeing that myself! Feel free to spread the joy.

 

[LexyBoy]

Can someone not twit Adonis a blank PDF?

Although he may have requested that date deliberately

 

[30907]

Here it is - the only LM T/T I have... Sorry, second page wont upload yet

 

[30907]

Second page here, the right way up as well

 

[ole man]

How much of that is still possible?.
And will this route be the east to west route

 

[HSTEd]

Only 2/3 through trains per day per direction?

 

[jopsuk]

I make it four. But still, yes. I wonder if it ever had a better service? I'd actually doubt it- high frequency services on that sort of a route are a modern day thing.

 

[LexyBoy]

I make it four. But still, yes. I wonder if it ever had a better service? I'd actually doubt it- high frequency services on that sort of a route are a modern day thing.

Would the service have been reduced pre-Axe to help justify it, or is that a more recent thing (which ironically FGW were accused of with the Bicester line)?

 

[jopsuk]

It might have been (we need someone to dig out earlier timetables to show that) but I wouldn't be surprised if four trains a day was all it ever had- whereas I'd expect a reopened line to have an hourly service at a minimum.

 

[ainsworth74]

Interestingly the fastest through service then is only thirty minutes faster than the modern day service changing in London.

 

[gingerheid]

Looking at the same calculation, I was shocked that it's slower now than in 1967. Surely that's shameful?

It's interesting, though, that the service (as with the X5 today) he never been about seeing through journeys. Even with a higher population more likely to travel longer distances, l suspect that would hold true today.

 

[ainsworth74]

Hardly the service now involves changing in London! Really if you take out the very generous cross London transfer time of forty-five minutes to a more reasonable twenty the modern service isn't much slower than the fastest 1967 service (the rest being as fast or slower than the modern service) and involves a detour.

 

[eastdyke]

Looking at the same calculation, I was shocked that it's slower now than in 1967. Surely that's shameful?

It's interesting, though, that the service (as with the X5 today) he never been about seeing through journeys. Even with a higher population more likely to travel longer distances, l suspect that would hold true today.

I suspect that there would be a few more through journeys than some might think. As long as competitively priced tickets could be had, I would certainly use the route from Norwich - Cambridge - Oxford - Didcot - and on to avoid London.

Sadly I never used the route back in the day!!

 

[cle]

I think it will open up all sorts of journeys, especially from the East Midlands from the Bedford connection.

It's planned to be 60mph along Marston Vale, and 90-100mph on the rest (obviously with 125 from Oxford south) so journey times should be quite decent.

Hoping some XC trains might run from Nottingham or further afield. Through the route I think only Bedford, Bletchley and Oxford would need stops. But Bicester Shopping is hugely popular...this will open it up even further I think.

 

[dzug2]

I make it four. But still, yes. I wonder if it ever had a better service? I'd actually doubt it- high frequency services on that sort of a route are a modern day thing.

Well in 1947 there was one through train in one direction only - and it stood for an hour in Bletchley

From memory there were few if any through trains in the late 1950s until they introduced DMUs.

 

[MichaelAMW]

1962 T/T available here:

http://www.timetableworld.com/image_viewer.php?id=2&section_id=35

and 1947 in the usual hard-to-decipher old format here:

http://www.timetableworld.com/image_viewer.php?id=7&section_id=1451

and here:

http://www.timetableworld.com/image_viewer.php?id=7&section_id=1453

 

[30907]

1956 LM Timetable shows the route in two parts (split at Bletchley) with ONE through working in ONE direction only taking 3 hours (and another on Sats.)

I suspect the 1967 timetable ran from dieselisation onwards, more-or-less. It was competitive with Percival's/Premier Travel coaches taking 3 hours end to end and running twice daily. I used it once, before they introduced the Student Railcard...

 

[DarloRich]

Second page here, the right way up as well

Is this timetable from a period before the construction of the flyover? if NOT where did the trains to Bletchley stop?

If it was where did the line from Oxford run and how did trains access Blethcley station? I assume they had to cross the entire station area to reach the Bedford line

 

[30907]

Yes. They crossed the layout at the S end of Bletchley station, the flyover was built just to the north of the existing line on the Oxford side.
I imagine there was a bay on the Down side for Oxford-Bletchley (Googlemaps shows a roadway crossing the dual carriageway, which is a pretty big clue) as well. As mentioned earlier, until the mid-50's there were v few through workings at Bletchley anyway

 

[Buttsy]

Is this timetable from a period before the construction of the flyover? if NOT where did the trains to Bletchley stop?

If it was where did the line from Oxford run and how did trains access Blethcley station? I assume they had to cross the entire station area to reach the Bedford line

Oxford trains used what were platforms 1 & 2 at Bletchley. 1 was taken OOU when services stopped and 2 became a north facing parcels bay only. The station concourse was extended over the old 1 & 2 formations. The location of 1 & 2 were to the right of the down fast platform looking towards London.

Throughout the 80s, Bletchley was a favoured spotting haunt as it was only £2 on the bus from Oxford.

 

[mr_jrt]

The 1940's layer on getmapping isn't the greatest, but you can get a rough idea...

 

[DarloRich]

@ 30907/Buttsy & Mr jrt - thanks for your helpful input.

I have only lived down here for 2 years so have little knowledge of the area.

Even a few workings per day must have caused issues with trains having to cross from far left to far right of the station layout (as you look on the linked plans)

 

[Andyjs247]

I've managed to locate a copy of the 1968 LM Passenger Timetable. Table 55 shows train services by then had been truncated to the Bletchley-Bedford section, however bus connections from Oxford to Bletchley and Bedford to Cambridge were shown. Looking at the 1967 timetable, the whole route including Bletchley to Bedford was threatened with closure.

 

[30907]

@ 30907/Buttsy & Mr jrt - thanks for your helpful input.

I have only lived down here for 2 years so have little knowledge of the area.

Even a few workings per day must have caused issues with trains having to cross from far left to far right of the station layout (as you look on the linked plans)

Yes, but you have to remember that the main line at Bletchley was far less busy in those days. Even post electrification there were only 6-7 passenger trains an hour offpeak each way.

 

[Bevan Price]

1956 LM Timetable shows the route in two parts (split at Bletchley) with ONE through working in ONE direction only taking 3 hours (and another on Sats.)
.

Yes, the route was effectively treated as two separate branch lines, for local traffic and for providing connections for WCML destinations north of Bletchley. Before Milton Keynes Central was opened, a selection of WCML long distance trains called at Bletchley.

 

[John55]

Yes, but you have to remember that the main line at Bletchley was far less busy in those days. Even post electrification there were only 6-7 passenger trains an hour offpeak each way.

Yes, but don't forget the railway before 1956 was very different from now. The predominant traffic on main lines would not be passenger traffic. A line such as the WCML would have a vast number of goods trains of all descriptions from fast fitted freight on the fast lines to very slow loose coupled coal trains on the slow lines.

It would be more difficult to find paths for trains to run across the whole WCML at Bletchley than now due to slow clearance times for through traffic on the main line.