Excitement before tracksSourced
About a third of the authorised railways were never built
Railway shares became a British investment craze in the 1840s. In 1846 Parliament passed 263 acts to establish new railway companies. About a third of the authorised railways were never built: financial failure, acquisition before construction and fraudulent ventures were among the reasons.
A route on paper need not become a railway on the ground.
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Railway Mania · Wikimedia contributors
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Reviewed: 2026-10-10