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London North Western
Railway:
Midland
Railway:
Stratford
Midland Junction Railway
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LMS Route: LMS Route: Nuneaton to Leamington
Hawkesbury Lane Station: lnwhl146
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Hawkesbury Lane station's down platform building which
comprised a passenger waiting room and booking office. The photograph was taken
in British Railways days as is evident by the new station 'running in board
(name board) which is BR's Midland Region's corporate livery of white lettering
on a maroon background. The steps between the two doors were made available for
passengers who had difficulty in accessing the carriages from the platform.
This was because the designs of carriages on the first railways evolved from
stage coaches with passengers accessing the compartments from road level.
Initially this practice was continued in railway passenger vehicles which
resulted in platforms being built only a little above rail height as seen at
Maxstoke on the Hampton to Whitacre line - 'mrcm175a'. As carriages became longer they were fitted
with fixed axles necessitating the floor of the carriage to be raised to
accommodate a much stronger chassis but at a height still much lower than when
bogie wheels were provided. Carriages fitted with bogies required the floor to
be raised to a height sufficient for the bogies to rotate under the chassis. In
1850, when Hawkesbury Lane was opened, the height of the platform was based
upon carriages with fixed axles and therefore the steps needed to be provided.
The issue of platforms with platforms being lower than required for 20th
century rolling stock was common to most railway companies.
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