Any vicious competition story in the pre-grouping era

[Gostav]

When l browse the history story of Nickey line on Wiki, l find a interesting passage what is shows the competition between MS and LNWR.
"On one occasion, when a Midland Railway locomotive entered the LNWR siding at Boxmoor, the track was lifted by angry LNWR workers to prevent it from completing it journey."
I feel this kind of thing is crazy, but l can't find more details about the “MS loco invasion LNWR track” and does anyone know other competition stories like this?

 

[NSEFAN]

The Battle of Havant is a good one. A track access dispute between the LSWR and LBSCR escalating almost into a full-blown riot!

 

[randyrippley]

the history of the line between Lancaster and Morecambe indicates some unpleasant competition

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lancaster_and_Preston_Junction_Railway

 

[Merthyr Imp]

There was also the 'Battle of Nottingham' when the Great Northern Railway first attempted to run trains there from Grantham. Copied from Wikipedia:

'In 1852 the Great Northern arrived at Grantham and a connection was built into [the Midland Railway] station [at Nottingham]. Running rights were agreed such that the GN was able advertise through coaches from Nottingham to London in competition with the Midland.

'The latter obtained an Order in Chancery preventing the GN from running into Nottingham, but in 1852 an ANB&EJR train arrived in Nottingham with a GNR locomotive at its head. When it uncoupled and went to "run around" the train it found its way blocked by a Midland loco, while another blocked its retreat. The engine was shepherded to a nearby shed and, for good measure, the tracks were lifted. This episode became known as the "Battle of Nottingham" and, though the action moved to the courtroom, it was seven months before the loco was released.'

 

[Bevan Price]

Battle of Clifton (Junction), 12 March 1849. Details summarised from John Marshall's excellent L&YR history.

East Lancashire Railway (ELR) trains had running powers over L&YR from here into Manchester., paying a fee for each passenger. Initially, ELR trains were allowed to pass without stopping, but L&YR changed policy and insisted that all ELR trains stopped at Clifton for a ticket check. ELR objected, so L&YR put some timber across the line, and put an L&YR train on their side of the timber. The timber was then removed, and the ELR & LYR trains tried to push each other. Eventually the line became blocked by 8 assorted trains. The L&YR trains eventually withdrew, and allowed ELR trains to proceed, but for the next 4 years the ELR trains had to terminate at Salford instead of Manchester Victoria because of a different dispute.

 

[yorksrob]

I believe there may have been acts of sabotage between the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway and the South Eastern Railway at Bo-Peep junction in the early days.

 

[Flying Phil]

I believe there was a major affray with the GWR somewhere and Brunel was involved with a big gang of navvies?? and he was a magistrate at the time??? I will have to find out more details.

 

[Senex]

See "Great Railway Battles" by Geoffrey Body, Silver Link Publishing 1994, for a good selection of these events.

 

[daodao]

When l browse the history story of Nickey line on Wiki, l find a interesting passage what is shows the competition between MS and LNWR.
"On one occasion, when a Midland Railway locomotive entered the LNWR siding at Boxmoor, the track was lifted by angry LNWR workers to prevent it from completing it journey."
I feel this kind of thing is crazy, but l can't find more details about the “MS loco invasion LNWR track” and does anyone know other competition stories like this?

The Cardiff Railway (CR) junction with the Taff Vale Railway (TVR) near Treforest; it was used once only (for a ceremonial opening train) in 1911, but never again as it was a parallel route to Cardiff and the TVR would have lost substantial revenue for goods traffic (principally coal). The CR line was thus a white elephant for goods traffic, except for a short period about 1950 when it was used to access Nantgarw colliery, but the section as far as Coryton survives as a single line siding used by frequent local passenger trains to serve the north Cardiff suburbs.

 

[341o2]

Not quite coming to blows, but there was considerable animosity between the GWR and LSWR which continued until the former LSWR lines west of Salisbury were transferred to what was now the WR and run down following the Beeching report.

Both companies refused to admit to the existence of the "other" railway, and how the LSWR regretted the situation using GWR tracks through St Davids. It planned to build a new and seperate section, WW2 intervened and the new station was never built.

It was remarkable how often a GWR slow freight would be in section when a LSWR express was due

 

[yorksrob]

Both companies refused to admit to the existence of the "other" railway, and how the LSWR regretted the situation using GWR tracks through St Davids. It planned to build a new and seperate section, WW2 intervened and the new station was never built.

I never knew that ! Where would it have gone I wonder, given St Davids looks to be on a fairly cramped site ?

 

[pdeaves]

I never knew that ! Where would it have gone I wonder, given St Davids looks to be on a fairly cramped site ?

Imagine the current curve into St Davids from Central. Now 'fly off' from that above the Teignmouth line and drop down through what is now Exeter depot. Run adjacent to the current line to Cowley Bridge Junction.

Something like that, I think.

 

[yorksrob]

Imagine the current curve into St Davids from Central. Now 'fly off' from that above the Teignmouth line and drop down through what is now Exeter depot. Run adjacent to the current line to Cowley Bridge Junction.

Something like that, I think.

Ah, I see that might have been possible. I'm surprised the GWR didn't own the land though.

 

[Calthrop]

Not quite coming to blows, but there was considerable animosity between the GWR and LSWR which continued until the former LSWR lines west of Salisbury were transferred to what was now the WR and run down following the Beeching report.

Both companies refused to admit to the existence of the "other" railway, and how the LSWR regretted the situation using GWR tracks through St Davids. It planned to build a new and seperate section, WW2 intervened and the new station was never built.

It was remarkable how often a GWR slow freight would be in section when a LSWR express was due

It surprises me sometimes, how often in such situations with companies which were bitter rivals -- seemingly railway staff "played fair", and those of the "owning" company did not obstruct the "interloper".

Perhaps an encouraging conclusion can be drawn: in the main, people are more grown-up, and less of idiots, than we tend to think and expect !

 

[341o2]

If the line had been constructed, diversion of the river would be necessary.

There also were rivalries pre 1923 between the LB&SCR, and its neighbouring railway companies, being likened to a small aggressive man always spoiling for a fight also in particular between Edward Watkins of the South Eastern and James Forbes of the Chatham and Dover. The outcome was that nearly every town in Kent and East Sussex had two, sometimes three, stations

 

[gg1]

Not really vicious but I've always liked the story of how the LNWR used legal pressure to effectively force the GWR to waste money on building the totally useless Duddeston Viaduct. The link below explains it better than I can:

http://www.warwickshirerailways.com/gwr/bordesley-duddeston.htm