A perennial and fairly meaningless question that is often asked is ‘what are the origins …
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A Study In Sussex part 13: Norwood Junction
Seemingly illogically, now is the time to look at Norwood Junction and its future importance in enabling an upgrade to the Brighton Main Line. Initially this station was not intended to form part of this …
Continue readingA New Typeface for the Underground: Johnston 100
London Underground’s hundred-year-old typeface is iconic. Designed by Edward Johnston in 1915, it almost singlehandedly revived the sans-serif. Yet after a century of evolution some of the things that originally made it special have gradually disappeared. We look at the typeface’s history and at TfL’s ambitious attempt to rediscover its soul.
Continue readingLondon’s First Highway: The East London River Crossings
There are only so many ways of crossing the River Thames east of Tower Bridge. East of Greenwich the communities on the north and south banks are little more than distant relatives. Continuing our look …
Continue readingOn Our Line: The London Reconnections Podcast
The residents of LR Towers are happy to announce the launch of our new monthly podcast, “On Our Line.” As anyone who reads this site or has attended our meetups knows, transport is a fascinating …
Continue readingThe Last Stand of the Old Guard?
The role of the railway guard has been in the news recently due to various industrial disputes in London and beyond. With debate set to continue over the role in the coming months, this seems …
Continue readingHigh Speed Buffers (Part 3): Are There Limits to Commuting?
Our series on HS2 aims to look at how it affects London. Finding a suitable terminus will be a big part of that, something that is dependent on a number of factors. A critical one …
Continue readingIn Pictures: “An Album of Railway Engines”
Between our more detailed pieces it is nice, occasionally, to draw breath. Beginning in 1875 cigarette cards became a popular collectable in both the UK and abroad. They often featured illustrations of various modes of …
Continue readingA Glimpse At The Transport Path Ahead
A TfL presentation delivered to Sadiq Khan, the newly elected Mayor of London, has surfaced online. It offers an insight into the transport announcements we can expect in the near future. It also indicates a …
Continue readingElizabethan Style: A Look At Crossrail’s Core Stations
To coincide with a new exhibition on Crossrail station design at the Royal Institute of British Architects, the organisation have released a series of images showing the proposed internal designs of a number of the …
Continue readingThe Politics of Emptiness
On 5 May, Londoners will choose their new mayor. In doing so, they will grant a single individual the third biggest direct personal mandate of any politician in the whole of Europe (only France and …
Continue readingLondon’s First Highway: The Fall and Rise of River Buses
Over two millenia ago, at the furthest downstream location that a bridge could be built across the River Thames, London was born. In many ways the river is the very reason for London’s existence. The …
Continue readingThe Politics of Integration
We sit down with Green Party mayoral candidate Sian Berry and talk about integrated transport, tackling air pollution and challenging transport tradition.
Continue readingWe Now Have An Events Section
Just a short post to announce something that the eagle-eyed amongst you have likely already spotted – we now have an “Events” section on the menu. The goal with this is to start to build …
Continue readingCrossrail: Making Concrete Progress
With Crossrail well into the phase of building the railway infrastructure we look at progress in the tunnel section and what is being done to push forward ahead of schedule Not just a real railway …
Continue readingThe Politics of Doing Not Being
To regular readers of London Reconnections the name Caroline Pidgeon will be a familiar one. A veteran of London politics and one of the leading voices on transport issues within the capital for over eight …
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