Complete with Highland Stag, blue Scottish Region ‘Thurso’ totem and small locomotive numbers to ‘add interest’! flic.kr/p/2jMQDPM (Gavin B, August 1988)

Feels familiar #glitch

The APT [-P] must have blown minds on 1980, not least for its proto-InterCity livery; I used to wait eagerly for it to come through Rugby on the 1630 Euston–Glasgow Central service in 1984/5, usually at about 1725 #beast

Alive and well in Whitby @doublearrow64.bsky.social

Thomas Ableman’s article gives plenty of food for thought If the overarching brand distinctive is ‘one unified/integrated railway network’, then *everything* must dance to that tune (from ticketing to rolling stock ownership)

This was a mighty fine livery, might even have preferred it to Rail Blue and Pearl Grey on the HSTs; couldn’t ever quite understand the distance between ‘InterCity‘ and ‘125’, mind you

The Old Wardour Castle sign has the distinction of being the only one I've found located more than a few hundred metres from the site. I wonder if, before brown signs, they were more common. There's also a generation of National Trust signs still out there.

Similar but not identical This is the page you want btw :) wemadethis.co.uk/blog/2022/02...

A nicely restored ancient monument sign at Castle Rising.

Beautiful signs, JK :)

Yes that is also a problem using green; either (a) the particular shade of green chosen is quite grey anyway, (b) it has faded in the sunlight, or (c) one suffers from red-green colourblindness as a lot of people do!

Better on the symbol front but the green text doesn’t quite offer enough contrast, on that principle I would probably have made the legend black, hope that doesn’t offend the good people of Wales, green being the colour for the Welsh version of the placename

@wemadethis.co.uk do you know what the typeface is here?

‘Terrible TfW Signs’ is not me, I promise 😂

This is where Network Rail Wayfinding v3 was more robust because it separated primary and secondary information on signs; also, like 1965, primary pictograms were neatly stacked (and didn’t need a keyline around them which is just visual clutter)

Yeah, that’s almost invisible. The red is poor.

Someone somewhere has clearly decided Rail Alphabet 2 was not up to the job, especially when it comes to accessibility, hence Rail Alphabet 3 with its hooked lowercase L and straight-legged Cap R which avoid confusion with cap I and cap B respectively

WHY DO THEY KEEP DOING THIS, IT SO OBVIOUSLY LOOKS WRONG

The directional signs at Cambridge South appear to be a regression with the potential for lots of identical arrows stacked above each other; also the pictograms are no longer lined up but appear somewhat scattergun

Another iteration of the Wayfinding Guidelines? The typeface is Rail Alphabet 3 in a Bold weight (note the accessible hooked lowercase L), which presumably consigns Rail Alphabet 2 SIGN Medium to the dustbin of history The arrow also looks thicker again and the pictogram in a box is new

Being a complete geek,the thickest of the steel plate on a Peak is half of that of a Class 40 as seen on 46009 @doublearrow64.bsky.social

@doublearrow64.bsky.social a little of the past @ Norwood Junction

Breaking one’s own rules #NoParking

I reckon 3 out of 5 publications designed by Roundel…

‘The Porter’ (1972) This was the first piece of Ladybird artwork I ever bought. It drew me in. Artist: John Berry

Very 60s façia treatment #BritishRail #CorporateIdentity

I thought I had found the earliest record of 87006 in Executive Dark Grey with large logo livery on 12 May 1984… flic.kr/p/2oefNf1 (Geoff Dowling)

@rclongauthor.bsky.social Richard, very excited about a Sealink teaspoon acquisition. Difficult to be certain but the Port side double arrow looks in the reverse configuration which is an excellent effort. Cc @doublearrow64.bsky.social

Was there ever a nicer looking locomotive than 87006? flic.kr/p/2r8rSUN (c/o David Hills, original photographer unknown)

This is Nanking Blue (BS 5252/4800 18 E 53, which is now called Tartan Blue)…

British Rail duster flying above Leeds today

That is a crazy photograph :)

Just happened to be at Warrington when the Lumo to Stirling came past; is it just me or are those ‘go faster’ wings totally surplus to requirements?

This article by @danielhwright.bsky.social includes a wonderful photograph of Richmond station by Philip Butler. Aside from the banal use of the word ‘Station’ on the façade (without a Rail Symbol), there are two house flags flying (overkill perhaps?) which caught my attention and reminded me…

It is! I’m popping down to Waterloo P10 & 11, there’ll be a display marking the anniversary

Which reminds me, it’s the 40th anniversary of Network SouthEast Day tomorrow…

Exactly this…

1 out of 3 is not bad 😩

Not often that Railfreight locomotives are found in full regalia (cast symbol and depot mascot plates); Roundel’s scheme (in this case the Coal variant) could make heroes out of the most unlikely contenders :)

Leeds departures screen 1970 @doublearrow64.bsky.social

This practice needs to get in the bin; doesn’t help wayfinding communication even in the slightest #Northern (Photograph: Jason Carthy-Torbitt)

How sixties can it get?

Not by me, it’s not :)

Horrific lack of taste with that yellow sign

Superb photo but I can’t tell you how much I utterly despise vinyl; not sure why a train has to be used as an advertising hoarding, they look largely horrendous and I‘m afraid can’t think of the exception that breaks that rule

Loving this (just not the outline symbol)

A pretty good indication from the Minister for Rail on how low the bar has been set for this new, unremarkable GBR brand…

The number on the front of 701006 is set in Weissenhof Grotesk (from Indian Type Foundry) which is the font used by South Western Railway so I imagine the front has not changed; the number under the driver’s window is different again but not Rail Alphabet 2 or 3

Why muddy the waters at the critical moment? Not sure how a fleet name is even relevant to anyone except the manufacturer