Originally Posted by
sinkov
Selective or not, there was just one serious accident in 1966, just 35 in the 7 years from 63-69, an average of just five a year. Have you the remotest idea of the extent of the rail system in the early 60s OC ? It was covering the country from end to end, god knows how many trains were running but let me give you an example.
When I started work at Accrington there were 7 platforms, a ticket office, a parcels office and a stationmasters office. The first train out was at 6 am to Manchester and they were the running virtually continuously for 18 hours to numerous destinations including even a train to London. We worked three shifts in the ticket office to cover all the services. Besides the passenger trains, there were parcels trains, goods trains which also ran through the night, empty stock movements, light engine movements, at weekends there were additional special trains to football matches or the west coast resorts, there were also special trains from all over Yorkshire heading to Blackpool, Morecambe, Southport coming through as well. And this is what it was like all over the country, it was manic, the railways were everywhere and thronged with trains, but just 5 serious accidents a year. Of course there were going to be accidents, do I really have to point this out, you surely are not so perverse as to claim there shouldn't be any ? But given the amount of traffic, the safety record was remarkable.
Today Accrington Railway Station has two platforms, what looks like a bus shelter, and a DMU trundles through every hour.