The Great Central main line from Sheffield Victoria to London Marylebone was constructed in 1899 as part of a grand vision to link the industrial cities of the north to the continent. Designed for high speed it was always an outlier compared to the more well established Midland and West Coast main lines. With boundary changes and rising costs it fell victim to the Beeching Axe, the last section from Nottingham to Rugby closing in 1967. A preservation group was established and with much effort restored the line between Loughborough and the northern outskirts of Leicester. A separate group is restoring the section north to Ruddington, the missing gap between the two subject to one of the biggest restoration campaigns in preservation.
![](https://s2.save4k.ru/pic/p0TDmzTnrwo/maxresdefault.jpg)