History of rail transport in Great Britain 1923–1947

The period includes the investment following World War I; the rise in competition from the roads in the 1920s; development of steam locomotives capable of sustained 100 mph (160 km/h) running; the Great Depression of the 1930s; World War II and its aftermath; and the lead up to nationalisation during 1947.

The nationalisation of the railways, which had been mooted by William Ewart Gladstone as early as the 1830s, was considered, but was rejected by the government and the owners of the rail companies.

Products of this competition were the LMS and LNER races to Scotland, with the famous Flying Scotsman service and LNER's Mallard setting a world speed record of 126 mph, the LMS's production of diesel railcars, electrification of lines by the LNER, the GWR's ingenious marketing and the SR's mass electrification scheme, which led to nearly the whole of the south east's trains being electric.

But with road competition encroaching, it put the railways at a disadvantage, because they had to subsidise unprofitable freight operations with profitable ones, which drove up charges.

The road haulage operators, who had no such restrictions, could privately negotiate any rate they wished to undercut the railways' published price lists, and take away their business while offering door-to-door delivery.

However, the subsequent Salter Report of 1933 was adopted as government policy; the Ministry of Transport lifted some of the restrictions on the railways while introducing licensing and safety regulations on hauliers.

With the transport policy pursued by the government, and more general changes in lifestyle favouring travel by road, the Big Four railways never ran a healthy profit.

However, they were still able to produce the world-leading services on the East Coast Main Line, running trains at speeds of up to 110 mph, a remarkable achievement.

From the end of the 1920s, when it was obvious that the motor vehicle was in the ascendancy, dozens of little-used branch lines began to close: some to passenger traffic, many completely.

The railway system suffered heavy damage in some areas due to German Luftwaffe bombing, especially in cities such as London and Coventry.

In 1938, the LMS operated over 7,100 route miles (11,400 km) of railway across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

The railway's main business was the transport of freight between these major industrial centres, rather than passengers.

The early history of the LMS was dominated by infighting between its two largest constituents, the Midland and the North Western, previously two fierce rivals.

The arrival of the new Chief Mechanical Engineer William Stanier heralded a change in the LMS, introducing new ideas rather than continuing with the company's internal conflict.

The LNER hauled more than one-third of Britain's coal, and derived two-thirds of its income from freight services.

Top graphic designers and poster artists such as Tom Purvis were employed to promote its services and encourage the public to visit the holiday destinations of the east coast during the summer.

Its total route length was 3,800 mi (6,100 km), much of which had been built to handle the coal traffic from south Wales.

"Sunny South Sam" became a character fixed firmly in the public mind as embodying the service of the railway, whilst slogans such as "live in Kent and be content" encouraged commuters to move out from London, and thus further patronise the services offered by the railway.

The intensively used commuter system in a relatively small geographical area made the Southern a natural candidate for electrification.

This was the largest 0-6-0 to operate in Britain, and forty of these transformed the Southern's ability to haul heavy freight.