Railway Archive: The Last Main Line Route

The plan of the Great Central Railway (below) shows construction contracts, branch lines and alternative routes.

The two routes from Aylesbury rejoined at the start of Contract #7- Canfield Place to Marylebone- which passed beneath central London.

This interactive route plan consists of 85 maps. Follow this link to see an index of all the maps.

Or return to the maps homepage >

Click on the names in the plan (or use the links below) to see OS maps (from 2003) of the route the Great Central Railway took.

1: Manchester to Sheffield

Named the "Woodhead Route", this section ran through Glossop and Penistone.

2: Sheffield to Annesley Junction

Incorporating the branch line to Chesterfield before meeting the London Extension proper.

3: Annesley to East Leake

Construction Contract #1 saw the line pass through Hucknall and the city of Nottingham.

4: East Leake to Aylestone

Steam engines still run on Contract #2, between Loughborough and Leicester.

5: Aylestone to Rugby

The path of Contract #3 runs alongside the M1 to Lutterworth.

6: Rugby to Woodford

Contract #4 continued south through villages such as Braunstone and Charwelton.

7: Woodford to Brackley

Southward once more as Contract #5 passed through Sulgrave and Helmdon.

8: Brackley to Quainton Road

Starting in north Oxfordshire, Contract #6 swung south east towards London.

At both Grendon Underwood and Aylesbury the line splits, forming two routes into London:

9: Grendon Underwood to Marylebone

The Metropolitan and Great Central route through north-west London via Aylesbury, Amersham and Harrow.

10: Grendon Underwood to Marylebone

The Great Western and Great Central Joint Railway through west London via Princes Risborough, Wycombe and Beaconsfield.