Parkway Railway Stations

AUTHOR: Mark Chatterton

PUBLISHER: Mortons Books

ISBN: 978-1-911658-44-3

PRICE: £12.99

WEB: www.mortonsbooks.co.uk

THE DESCRIPTION ‘Parkway’ will be presumed to mean ‘park’ your car and go on your ‘way’ to many people, but in fact the true meaning, as you’ll discover when you read the book, might well surprise many readers. The start of the book dispels this myth, especially with regards to the first example at Bristol Parkway, which opened in 1972. Since then dozens more have opened, and by default all generally have excellent and copious car parking provision, so for those the preferred definition is probably more appropriate. One thing they generally have in common is they are built away from large conurbations, usually on the outskirts, meaning getting to them by road is the usual method.

The author has done an excellent job in tracing the histories of the nation’s parkways, with details of all those currently in use and most of them illustrated. Also included is a chapter of proposed examples that were never built, and proposals for future parkways around the UK. Although the subject is very specific the author has done an excellent job with it, and so as a vital part of the UK’s railway history I can certainly recommend this book. (MN)