British Transport Commission : recommended practice for lighting of railway and other premises : November 1960 : surface station platforms
This copy of the BTC's "lighting standards" was passed to me by an ex-Underground colleague when he retired with a note reminding me that when he started work these were still, effectively "our Premises' Standard". One of the many work strands we collectively undertook over the years was the modernisation of 'Standards' to meet modern requirements and expectations.
As can be seen the Recommended Practices covered many aspects of the BTC's empire, these being British Railways, British Transport Docks and British Waterways Divisions and the the London Transport Executive. This would only survive a few more years before the BTC was abolished and the various 'Executives' went their own ways but, as with LT, these sorts of 'practices' were simply either carried forward or mandated into the new organisations. The sections covered include passenger stations, offices, workshops and depots, goods depots and yeards and docks, harbours and wharves - as well as canteens and staff mess rooms. They make great use of fluorescent lighting that had been developed extensively since the end of WW2 - and indeed London Underground had first trialled such in 1945, with the Central line openings of 1946 being the first stations fitted from new. Tungsten fittings are still called for in specific places as are mercury street lamps. As well as the text, giving tabulated information as to lighting levels, there are a series of illustrative photographs.
These four photographs show surface station platforms and start with a fine view of what is I suspect Glasgow Central station - the dedicated "Royal Scot" platform entrances and the advert for Mavara Tea being clues. I do like the apparently 'neon' tubular illuminated platofrm numbers!
The second platform, carefully lit so the glare hides the totems, looks to be one of the Southern's 'deco' style although I am not discounting one of say the LMSR's Wirral platforms. The other two show a station currently being reconstructed again - Gatwick Airport on the Brighton line. Not only does this show widespread use of the fluorescent lanterns that became 'standard' witht he station lettering on the diffuser - it shows a station that had the fittings fitted at right angles to the platform edge. This was less common as, certainly on LU, the lighting flood was seen as being best as being in line with the platform edge. I had ascribed the manufacturer of the Gatwick Airport lanterns to GEC as their 'Clearspace' but I have recently discovered that another manufacturer, Falks, seem to have made their Ionlite lanterns for this station.
British Transport Commission : recommended practice for lighting of railway and other premises : November 1960 : surface station platforms
This copy of the BTC's "lighting standards" was passed to me by an ex-Underground colleague when he retired with a note reminding me that when he started work these were still, effectively "our Premises' Standard". One of the many work strands we collectively undertook over the years was the modernisation of 'Standards' to meet modern requirements and expectations.
As can be seen the Recommended Practices covered many aspects of the BTC's empire, these being British Railways, British Transport Docks and British Waterways Divisions and the the London Transport Executive. This would only survive a few more years before the BTC was abolished and the various 'Executives' went their own ways but, as with LT, these sorts of 'practices' were simply either carried forward or mandated into the new organisations. The sections covered include passenger stations, offices, workshops and depots, goods depots and yeards and docks, harbours and wharves - as well as canteens and staff mess rooms. They make great use of fluorescent lighting that had been developed extensively since the end of WW2 - and indeed London Underground had first trialled such in 1945, with the Central line openings of 1946 being the first stations fitted from new. Tungsten fittings are still called for in specific places as are mercury street lamps. As well as the text, giving tabulated information as to lighting levels, there are a series of illustrative photographs.
These four photographs show surface station platforms and start with a fine view of what is I suspect Glasgow Central station - the dedicated "Royal Scot" platform entrances and the advert for Mavara Tea being clues. I do like the apparently 'neon' tubular illuminated platofrm numbers!
The second platform, carefully lit so the glare hides the totems, looks to be one of the Southern's 'deco' style although I am not discounting one of say the LMSR's Wirral platforms. The other two show a station currently being reconstructed again - Gatwick Airport on the Brighton line. Not only does this show widespread use of the fluorescent lanterns that became 'standard' witht he station lettering on the diffuser - it shows a station that had the fittings fitted at right angles to the platform edge. This was less common as, certainly on LU, the lighting flood was seen as being best as being in line with the platform edge. I had ascribed the manufacturer of the Gatwick Airport lanterns to GEC as their 'Clearspace' but I have recently discovered that another manufacturer, Falks, seem to have made their Ionlite lanterns for this station.