>>427558>>427560>>427569>>427572Well look who hasn't actually read the Beeching report. It contains some brilliantly insightful thinking for its time. It isn't beyond criticism, but WAAAA ALL DAT CLOSED LINES isn't really valid.
Some of the assumptions were faulty. It assumed that there would be a network of bus services to fill the void left by withdrawing passenger services. Thanks to Marples, and a general aspiration to car ownership, the new buses never came.
Some of the data was manipulated by DoT officials, on orders from Marples' mandarins, and unbeknownst to Beeching. For example, traffic surveys were carried out in daytime rather than in the peak.
Some of the data was manipulated by the railway. Three of the English regions were more-or-less the Grouping companies in disguise, only now they had control over the other companies' lines in their territory (in return for handing over their own lines in other territories), and they had different approaches to operating them. The Southern Region's only real gain from GWR was the line to Weymouth, which they managed sensibly. The Western Region incorporated ex-SR branches into their network, but faced with duplication gave favourable treatment to the ex-GWR lines. The Midland Region actively ran down the ex-GWR lines, and took steps to make them look even worse when data was being collected.
Some of the methodology was flawed. Ticket sales were credited entirely to the origin station with no regard to the destination. As a result, resort towns looked quieter than they were, since most passengers there were on return tickets bought elsewhere.
Most of the corruption came on the part of Marples himself, who was a road construction magnate. Beeching was technically seconded from the board of ICI, and his only real sin was asking the government to match his salary, which was eye-watering for the time.
