Some more very recent shots from Mick Knox of the Oxford to Cambridge line around Winslow before the engineers moved in.
Mick added when sending these 'When I was out here, rushing about before going to work, I thought how the line blends in with the countryside, especially the blue engineering brick built bridges, and now our motorways are a blot on the landscape. '
Of course when railways were first built there were a lot of objections from country people that the lines would blot the landscape. For a few years no doubt they did, especially when accompanied by hundreds of navvies! But it's true, the railways (like the canals before) quickly 'bedded in' and in some cases even enhanced the landscape (think some of the S&D viaducts). I doubt even the most rabid petrolhead would claim that roads (apart from the little country lanes) have ever achieved this.
It helps that trains only run at intervals, even on the busiest routes. A busy road is an endless procession of cars and lorries, a total intrusion in lives rather than an occasional reminder of civilization.
