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How railways got Britain running on time

Mayhem on railway lines led to the widespread adoption of GMT.

The introduction of the railway in the 1800s meant that far flung areas of the country were now in relatively quick and easy reach. This transport triumph was an extraordinary feat, but it was not without problems. Journeys could be hazardous and accidents were common because trains running on the same lines were not travelling to a standard time.

On Inside Central Station, Network Rail tour guide Paul explained: "The time in Glasgow, Manchester, London and the other major cities were different, they were not precise. This imprecision caused a great problem for the railway companies."

"Trains have to depart and come in at a certain time... so it became paramount that the railway companies had to standardise [time]."

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How arrival of the railways helped to set the time for the country

The arrival of the railway helped standardise time across the whole of the country

Network Rail tour guide Paul at Glasgow's Central Station

The end of confusion

These days it may seem rather odd that areas of Britain did not run to the same time, but Paul explains that before the Industrial Revolution, the precise time of day was less important than it is now.

"If people wanted to know what the time was they would look at the sun dials in the town square and then [...] the town clock. The time was not regulated but in those days it never mattered.

"The only important thing to the people that lived within these areas was the time that was set on that clock."

However, a solution was required to address the problem of accidents on the railways, and in 1847 Greenwich Mean Time was adopted by all British railway companies bringing an end to timing confusion.