LMS Route: Hampton in Arden to Whitacre

Coleshill later Maxstoke Station: mrcm175

View showing the very short platform and the up signal which was operated by the station staff. The photograph illustrates perfectly the evolution in platforms during the first fifty years of railways in Britain. Railway coaches were initially based on the horse-drawn coaches of the time, being boarded by passengers from ground level climbing steps with passenger luggage stored on top of the carriage roof whilst travelling.

Initially railway platforms were built to suit such vehicles being constructed to a height approximately the same as the top of the rail - similar to the platform seen opposite the booking office. Later, as the railway coach developed to be more robust and longer requiring a more substantial underframe, platforms were raised in height to make access for passengers more easier. Even the height seen above was lower than that adopted in the 20th century to accommodate bogies. C1905

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