Great Western Railway (GWR) is proudly showcasing the history of their network and celebrating the rich heritage of Britain’s railways with brand new animated images.
By delving into the historical railway image archives and commissioning a photographer to capture the stations in their present-day glory, GWR has successfully showcased the gradual development of Britain’s railways over the past 70 years and presented them in a series of innovative visuals.
Reading railway station was first a single-sided station and was originally the last stop on the GWR mainline when it opened in 1840.
Check out this amazing interactive image which shows the change at Reading Station over time! #rdguk https://t.co/TfqDpmP0yA pic.twitter.com/NJqRGArOmE
— Reading Chronicle (@rdgchronicle) May 23, 2019
Change has been big, with The Queen twice opening important upgrades.
The first was a £20 million redevelopment in 1989, with the second £897 million worth of changes that brought five new platforms, two entrances, and a new bridge in 2014.
In 1835, a collaboration between a group of businessmen and a man who would be one of Britain's historically brilliant engineers, Isambard Kingdom Brunel, started the story of the Great Western Railway.
From the early days of Brunel's engineering excellence to the introduction of electrification across the network, GWR's network is known for its iconic railway stations and ever-changing modernisation - most recently the brand new fleet of trains replacing 1970s models.
Key destinations that are featured include Oxford, London Paddington, Reading, Bath and Newton Abbot.
Reading station was originally the last stop on the Great Western mainline when it opened in 1840. It's experienced a lot of big changes since then, which you can see in the animation.
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