Resignalling Britain Magazine

24 August 2019

A seismic change is sweeping across Britain's railways. As large – if not larger – than the abolition of steam is the implementation of the Network Operating Strategy. This blueprint for the next 10 years has two strands, both imperative to understanding if the changes sweeping the railway are to make sense. On the one side is the policy of concentrating the signalling of the UK into 14 regional operating centres (ROCs). The second pillar of the strategy is in-cab signalling, part of the European Rail Traffic Management System. In this lavishly illustrated 132-page publication, railways author and enthusiast Michael Rhodes starts by looking back at Britain's Victorian signalling heritage, explains the changes that are to take place over the next five years and then reviews each of the 14 ROCs and the steam age signalboxes they will replace on a line-by-line basis. Finally, Michael looks forward to the preservation of our signalling heritage.