This is taken from the western end of Dawlish beach. The line railway line that hugs the coast along this section is currently closed following serious damage to the rail to the east. The section of line Exeter to Newton Abbot (South Devon Railway, an extension of the Great Western Railway) completed in 1846 was originally powered by atmospheric pressure! A pipe was laid between the rails a cylinder in the pipe attached to the train was drawn along the pipe by a vacuum. By 1848 this system was abandoned due to a combination of technical and financial difficulties
Nice bit of history Brunel was a genius but even he made a few miscalculations, in today's blame culture he would have been pilloried for his mistakes instead of lauding his achievements.
Nice shot showing the rocks in the foreground. How is the rebuilding of the line going on?
@pennystot@virtualbrownie sadly the light was a bit flat so the photo does not the view justice. I think with today's technology Brunel's system would have greater chance of success. In the early 20th century many department stores implemented a simplistic version of the concept to send messages around the store in pods and tubes. I believe Nationwide Building Society still used a similar process through to 1990's to transport money and notes between cash desk and back office.
The repair work is largely hidden from public view as all footpaths in area are closed. There is considerable activity in the area, the station platform rebuild was progressing well.
Then you for your kind response, looking at your photos is like going down memory lane for me and my fading memory is so precious. Yes I remembered the Coop had such a devise when they had a huge shop on the corner opposite to Boots corner
Nice shot showing the rocks in the foreground. How is the rebuilding of the line going on?
The repair work is largely hidden from public view as all footpaths in area are closed. There is considerable activity in the area, the station platform rebuild was progressing well.