LYCOS RETRIEVER 
Isambard Kingdom Brunel: Great Western Railway
built 654 days ago
Even before the Great Western Railway was opened, Brunel was moving on to his next project: transatlantic shipping. He used his prestige to convince his railway company employers to build the Great Western, at the time by far the largest steamship in the world. She first sailed in 1837.
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In 1833, Brunel was made chief engineer of the great western railway. His work on the london to bristol line established his reputation, but he used a non-standard track width for efficiency. This track width, while better failed for political reasons, not least of which was having to change trains when the two systems interacted. The germans made the same mistake with non-standard widths of track in world war two, which significantly hindered them in their fight on the russian front.
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In the mean time, Brunel moved on. In 1833 he was appointed engineer of the Great Western Railway, one of the wonders of Victorian-age Britain. Running from London to Bristol (and a few years later, to Exeter), the Great Western contained a series of impressive achievements -- viaducts, stations, and tunnels -- that ignited the imagination of the technically minded Britons of the age. Brunel soon became one of the most famous men in Britain on the back of this interest.
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An enormously versatile and great engineer, Brunel is probably best remembered for his construction of a network of tunnels, bridges and viaducts for the Great Western Railway. He is ... responsible for the design of several famous ships, including the SS Great Britain, Bristol. And amongst some of the beautiful bridges he has designed and constructed stands the world famous Clifton Suspension Bridge in Bristol.
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The turning point of Brunel's career came in 1833 when he was appointed engineer to the new railway to be built between London and Bristol. The route of the Great Western Railway which he surveyed was exceptionally level, and ignoring the then emerging standard gauge of 1.44 m (4 ft 8
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In 2006, there is the possibility that several of Brunel's bridges over the Great Western Railway might be demolished because the line is planned to be electrified, and there is inadequate clearance for the overhead wires. Buckinghamshire County Council is petitioning to have further options pursued, in order that all nine of the historic remaining bridges on the line can remain.[14][15]
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Great Western Railway