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West London Railway
All photographs of this railway in date order.
![Motorail departure board, Kensington Olympia, 1969. <br><br>[John Furnevel //1969]](/images/4000/4643.jpg "Kensington Olympia")
![BRCW 'Crompton' Type 3 no D6575 of Hither Green shed threads the back streets of NW10 between Mitre Bridge Junction and Willesden Junction High Level station in March 1969. The train of Presflos is on the spur linking the West London and North London lines. (Note: D6575 {later class 33 no 33057} was withdrawn in August 2005 and subsequently purchased for preservation. The locomotive is currently undergoing refurbishment on the West Somerset Railway.) [See image 40259]<br><br>[John Furnevel 18/03/1969]](/images/37000/37523.jpg "Mitre Bridge Junction")
![The sprawl that was Kensington Olympia in June 1969, with Type 3 'Crompton' no D6570 taking a freight south on one of the through roads towards Clapham Junction. At that time various bays and sidings still stood on both sides of the running lines, together with significant areas of unused former railway land, but not for very much longer [see image 5189].<br><br>[John Furnevel 05/06/1969]](/images/37000/37691.jpg "Kensington Olympia")
![Hardly surprising to see 4472 on display at Kensington Olympia in 1974 - but slightly disappointing to see it playing second fiddle to a car show!<br><br>[Ken Strachan 08/08/1974]](/images/53000/53734.jpg "Kensington Olympia")
![DEMU <I>Thumper</I> set 207010 stands at Kensington Olympia's platform 2 in the mid 1980s. The special had recently arrived on a service via Clapham Junction in connection with an event being held at the adjacent Olympia Conference and Exhibition Centre.<br><br>[John Furnevel //1985]](/images/44000/44078.jpg "Kensington Olympia")
![View south at Kensington Olympia in July 1986 shortly after the appearance of regular InterCity traffic on the West London Line. A District Line service to High Street Kensington waits to depart from the bay platform on the right.<br><br>[David Panton /07/1986]](/images/18000/18173.jpg "Kensington Olympia")
![Scene at Kensington Olympia on the West London Line on 20 July 2005 as a Virgin CrossCountry Voyager arrives with a Brighton - Birmingham service. On the right, one of the Silverlink dual voltage 313 units is pulling away from the southbound platform with a Willesden Junction - Clapham Junction train.<br><br>[John Furnevel 20/07/2005]](/images/4000/4928.jpg "Kensington Olympia")
![A July evening in 2005 at Kensington Olympia with a 'eurostar' working wrong-line back to North Pole depot past a freight held on the centre road. The building in the background with the blue roof once housed the former Motorail loading bays - now Olympia Parking!<br><br>[John Furnevel 20/07/2005]](/images/5000/5129.jpg "Kensington Olympia")
![92016 <I>Brahms</I> with the 03.37 Trafford Park - Dollands Moor (ultimate destination Bari, Italy) heads south through Kensington Olympia on the West London Line on 20 July 2005. Standing in the bay on the left is a district line train for Earls Court and High Street Kensington.<br><br>[John Furnevel 20/07/2005]](/images/5000/5273.jpg "Kensington Olympia")
![<I>'Oooohhhh Jemima... what a nice cool breeze.... '</I> With shade at a premium at Kensington Olympia on an exceptionally hot summer morning in July 2005, a 'eurostar' stirs the air as it glides swiftly past waiting commuters on platform 3. The train is running south ecs from North Pole depot to take up duty at Waterloo International. <br>
<br><br>[John Furnevel 20/07/2005]](/images/34000/34614.jpg "Kensington Olympia")
![A Southern Trains Brighton - Watford Junction Cross-London service about to call at Kensington Olympia on the West London Line in July 2005.<br><br>[John Furnevel 21/07/2005]](/images/4000/4945.jpg "Kensington Olympia")
![EWS 66250 with an evening PW train passing north through Kensington Olympia on 21 July 2005. Amongst the vehicles is a wagon proclaiming Arsenal FC as <I>Kings of North London</I>. My own slightly mischievous cries of <I>'Come on you Spurrrrs...'</I> went unheeded by the train crew, but did succeed in turning one or two heads on Kensington High Street.<br><br>[John Furnevel 21/07/2005]](/images/5000/5130.jpg "Kensington Olympia")
![Some of the many changes that have taken place at Kensington Olympia in the preceeding 25 years or so [see image 37691] are shown in this photograph taken in July 2005, with an inspection unit standing at platform 2. The sidings and bays on the east side have now gone, with the through tracks reduced from 4 to 3 and a new, shorter, through platform constructed (the old platform now supports the fence). The land released has become a new 'street' standing between the station and Russell Road, consisting of blocks of flats in the 'non-trivial' price category. The former west side bays (the large blue shed and the area beyond), following several years as London's main Motorail terminal, now house 'Olympia Parking'. View is north towards Willesden Junction with Kensington High Street behind the camera. <br><br>[John Furnevel 21/07/2005]](/images/5000/5189.jpg "Kensington Olympia")
![A Eurostar runs south ecs through Kensington Olympia on a pleasant July morning in 2005, on its way from North Pole depot to Waterloo. Over on the left a District Line train is getting ready to leave the bay platform on the short trip to High Street Kensington. Note the spare power car bringing up the rear of the Eurostar. <br><br>[John Furnevel 21/07/2005]](/images/57000/57642.jpg "Kensington Olympia")
![Good places not to have a points failure - No 43 Mitre Bridge Junction. Freightliner 66570, having brought a southbound container train around the spur from Willesden Junction High Level station in July 2005, completes the switch from the North London Line to the West London line at Mitre Bridge Junction, just prior to crossing the Grand Union Canal. <br><br>[John Furnevel 22/07/2005]](/images/4000/4921.jpg "Mitre Bridge Junction")
![A Virgin Trains Manchester - Birmingham - Brighton service crosses the Grand Union Canal via Mitre Bridge on the West London Line in July 2005. The train has travelled from Birmingham via Oxford, Reading and the Great Western main line, and reached the southbound West London Line via Acton East Junction, Acton Wells Junction, West London Junction and Mitre Bridge Junction. Who needs railtours? <br><br>[John Furnevel 22/07/2005]](/images/5000/5159.jpg "Mitre Bridge Junction")
![<I>'Hmmm... one across, type of engine, noisy, smelly, 6 letters, D something....'</I> Concentrating on the crossword at Kensington Olympia in July 2005 as a northbound freight passes through on the centre road and a District Line train for High Street Kensington waits in the bay on the right.<br><br>[John Furnevel 22/07/2005]](/images/8000/8720.jpg "Kensington Olympia")
![<i>'...complete with full matching accessories.'</I> Hanson Aggregates Class 59 no 59104 takes the centre road through Kensington Olympia on the West London Line on 22 July 2005 with a company train heading north towards Willesden Junction. The station footbridge appears to be 'in transition' at this time.<br>
<br><br>[John Furnevel 22/07/2005]](/images/34000/34587.jpg "Kensington Olympia")
![View west from Scrubs Lane towards Mitre Bridge over the Grand Union Canal in July 2005. The train is a Silverlink West London Line service from Clapham Junction to Willesden Junction which is about to bear left at Mitre Bridge Junction, following which it will cross over the WCML to reach the high level station [see image 5193]. Beyond the wall on the left are the various yards and rail facilities located around Old Oak Common. (The geese on the left gave me a bit of a hard time getting past!) <br><br>[John Furnevel 22/07/2005]](/images/36000/36437.jpg "Mitre Bridge Junction")
![A Virgin Trains Manchester - Birmingham - Brighton service photographed on the level crossing 50 yards north of Mitre Bridge Junction in July 2005. Immediately after passing through the junction the train will cross the Grand Union Canal [see image 4921] and run south east to Clapham Junction on the West London Line, at which point it will turn south towards Brighton. <br><br>[John Furnevel 22/07/2005]](/images/36000/36553.jpg "Mitre Bridge Junction")
![Early morning at Kensington Olympia in July 2005 with the morning rush hour not yet in full swing. An empty Eurostar is passing through southbound en route from North Pole Depot to Waterloo International where it will form the 08.11 service to Paris Nord. In the bay platform on the left a District Line train will soon leave on a slightly shorter journey with a shuttle service to Earl's Court and High Street Kensington.<br><br>[John Furnevel 22/07/2005]](/images/38000/38509.jpg "Kensington Olympia")
![A Brighton - Watford Junction cross - London peak hour service operated by a Southern Trains class 377 EMU about to restart from Kensington Olympia on 22 July 2005.<br><br>[John Furnevel 22/07/2005]](/images/49000/49983.jpg "Kensington Olympia")
![The 14.22 Brighton - Manchester Piccadilly Virgin Voyager crosses onto the platform 2 loop at Kensington Olympia as it slows to make its scheduled stop on 23 July 2005. Bay platform 1, on the far left, is used by District line services.<br><br>[John Furnevel 23/07/2005]](/images/46000/46359.jpg "Kensington Olympia")
![EWS 66040 takes a freight north through the centre road at Kensington Olympia towards Willesden Junction on a fine summer evening in July 2005.<br><br>[John Furnevel 24/07/2005]](/images/44000/44424.jpg "Kensington Olympia")
![A northbound Southern unit heads towards Watford Junction, whilst a southbound Silverlink unit heads towards Clapham Junction.<br><br>[Michael Gibb 04/11/2006]](/images/12000/12101.jpg "Kensington Olympia")
![Seemingly hundreds of people pour off a District Line train and head for the exit to the adjacent Olympia exhibition halls.<br><br>[Michael Gibb 04/11/2006]](/images/12000/12102.jpg "Kensington Olympia")
![Just to break the EMU monotony a class 67 hauled charter arrives from Manchester.<br><br>[Michael Gibb 04/11/2006]](/images/12000/12103.jpg "Kensington Olympia")
![A Virgin Voyager calls at Kensington Olympia with the 0933 Birmingham New Street - Brighton on a rather dreich 22 August 2007. <br><br>[Michael Gibb 22/8/2007]](/images/16000/16289.jpg "Kensington Olympia")
![Marshalled in the centre of a Dollands Moor - Wembley freight on 25 August 2010, the first of the new ScotRail emus, no 380106, passes north through a rain-soaked Shepherd's Bush station on the West London Line. <br><br>[Michael Gibb 25/08/2010]](/images/30000/30414.jpg "Shepherd^s Bush")
![The first of the new ScotRail emus, unit 380106, seen here just after passing the northbound platform at Shepherd's Bush station on the West London Line on 25 August 2010 as part of a Dollands Moor - Wembley freight.<br><br>[Michael Gibb 25/08/2010]](/images/30000/30421.jpg "Shepherd^s Bush")
![Looking south west across the running lines at Kensington Olympia on 20 July towards the main hall of the exhibition centre. A District Line train for High Street Kensington stands in the bay platform.<br><br>[John Thorn 20/07/2013]](/images/43000/43955.jpg "Kensington Olympia")
