Greenford Broadway – ‘OO’ gauge Underground

This compact ‘OO’ gauge layout models the London Underground system between 1948 and 1962. See it at the 2022 Great Electric Train Show.

Gauge: ‘OO’ | Period: 1948-1962 | Region: London Underground | Operating team: Tony Dean and DOGA

Greenford Broadway in Tony Dean's London Underground micro layout built in 'OO' gauge.
Greenford Broadway in Tony Dean's London Underground micro layout built in 'OO' gauge. Trevor Jones.

Greenford Broadway is imagined as being situated on the east side of Ravenor Park, alongside Oldfield Lane South which runs behind the concrete wall along the back of the layout. The Charles Holden style ticket hall is on the south side of The Broadway on the B445 Ruislip Road. It is built in ‘OO’ gauge as a micro layout.

My history has the line originally built by the District Railway in 1879, the surface ticket hall was demolished and replaced in the early 1930s to the Art Deco style seen here, matching the shops of the Broadway development of the same era. However, at platform level the early solid bulls-eye signs can still be seen, as at Ealing Broadway, which also opened in 1879 – both lines originally being District Railway branches from Ealing Common station.

In reality in 1932 the Piccadilly line took over the District lines north of Ealing Common, the District retaining only workings to Ealing Broadway. However, I have surmised that if there had been a Greenford Broadway, District services would have continued to run there, as at Ealing Broadway.

Greenford Broadway is awkwardly served by a single line which, on its way north from Greenford Broadway, fans into a series of single line spurs, all controlled by Greenford Broadway signal cabin (of ‘Farringdon’ style).

From east to west the spurs connect to:

1. Greenford (Junction) station on the Central line. A bay platform to the south of the station serves the two-car central line shuttle from Greenford Broadway

2. Greenford (Junction) BR (Western Region) to give through running to Paddington via the Old Oak Common route. Rush-hour expresses being provided at Greenford Broadway for this service.

3. Greenford (Junction) for branch line services to West Ealing on the ex-GW main line. These branch trains terminate at Greenford Broadway

4. On the next spur to the west the line runs into a bay platform at Sudbury Hill for the Piccadilly line. This is served by a two-car Piccadilly line shuttle

5. A further spur from No. 4. above enables an ex-Midland push-pull from Greenford Broadway to run into a bay platform at Sudbury Hill – Harrow on the Marylebone line, just a few yards north of the Piccadilly line station of similar name.

6. The most Westerly spur off the branch onto the Piccadilly line connects direct to Rayners Lane. Trains from Greenford Broadway can serve all stations to Uxbridge and, by reversing at Rayners Lane, Harrow on the Hill (and through to Baker Street and the City)

All the aforementioned is geographically and technically plausible, however the whole thing is an imaginary exercise in West Middlesex Suburban Underground and BR modelling to feed into a micro layout built on an IKEA ‘LACK’ shelf measuring only 110cm by 26cm.