L. AND N.W. LONG DISTANCE RUNS.

Auckland Star, Volume XXIX, Issue 186, 9 August 1898, Page 2

L. AND N.W. LONG DISTANCE RUNS.

TRAVELLING AT OVER FIFTY MILES PER HOUR.

The summer train services on the London- and• North-Western main line just published disclose many features of interest in both the matter of accelerations and the great number of long distance runs.

In the Scotch service th« 10.0 a.m. from Euston becomes a. dining train, and the twenty minute stop at Preston is cut, but no improvement, in time to Edinburgh and Glasgow is made in deference to the blighting 'conference' which exists with the East Coast companies. As a result of this 'conference, the London1 and Manchester service is tied to four and a quarter hours by the longest and heaviest route from King'scross, and the 5.30 from Euston, travelling the 158 miles to Crewe in three hours and ten minutes without a break, is kept waiting ten minutes, and then sent over thirty»one miles of level line to Manchester at thirty-five miles per hour.

The Irish service displays a curious state of things in the company being forced to compete with' itself between London and Holyhead—a somewhat Gilbertian situation. The newly acceler-' ated 11 a.m. North Wall boat train Is thirty-five minutes faster than the socalled 'Wild irishman' leaving at 7.15 a.m. A feature of this train is an unbroken run of 130 miles from Stafford to Holyhead in 2hr. 42min. It is not many years since this time was not thought excessive for the eighty-four miles from Chester to Holyhead. That the authorities at Euston are aware of the hopelessness of keeping time with a tourist train that stops at busy stations is shown by tho new North Wales 11.40 a.m., which runs from Euston to Chester, a distance of 179 miles, with only a three minute stop at Northampton. The appended table gives an Idea of the LONG DISTANCE RUNNING on the London and North-Western this summer: Miles. Trains. London—Crewe 158 •■•• 5 Crewe—Carlisle '■ 142 •••• 5 Carlisle—Crewe 142 ••■• 5 'Crewe—Willesden • •• 153 ••.. 6 Willesden—Stafford 128 .... 1 Stafford—Willesden 128 .... 1 Stoke—Willesden 140 .... 1 Stafford—Holyhead 130 .... 1 Crewe— Holyhead 106 .... 1 Holyhead—Crewe 106 ••■• 1 Northampton—Chester .... 116 .... 1 Wigan—Carlisle 106 .... ,2

From this it will be seen that thirty trains are booked to run over 100 miles without a stop. In nearly all cases the speed is fifty miles an hour and over. Very soon the Great Central will be in the field, and then it will be seen if the competing companies to London are prepared to let the stranger browse peacefully on their land, or if the concert of Euston will play at Tempo di Gallopade.'