Super Outer Circle
Encyclopedia
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The Super Outer Circle was a railway route in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
operated between 1878 and 1880 over tracks which are now mainly owned by Network Rail
Network Rail
Network Rail is the government-created owner and operator of most of the rail infrastructure in Great Britain .; it is not responsible for railway infrastructure in Northern Ireland...
but include parts of the London Underground
London Underground
The London Underground is a rapid transit system serving a large part of Greater London and some parts of Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire and Essex in England...
. Although not actually a circle or even a complete circuit, the route circumnavigated the northern and western suburbs of the Victorian
Victorian era
The Victorian era of British history was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, refined sensibilities and national self-confidence...
capital and the name is used to reflect its similarity to the Inner Circle, Middle Circle
Middle Circle
The Middle Circle was a railway route in London which operated in the late 19th and early 20th centuries over tracks which are now mainly part of the London Underground...
and Outer Circle
Outer Circle (London)
The Outer Circle was a railway route in London operated in the late 19th and early 20th centuries over tracks which are now mainly owned by Network Rail but include parts of the London Underground...
routes (contemporarily the service was referred to by the District Railway as 'the Midland Route').
Route
The Super Outer Circle route was operated by the Midland RailwayMidland Railway
The Midland Railway was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1844 to 1922, when it became part of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway....
(MR) and ran between its terminus at St. Pancras and Earl's Court
Earl's Court tube station
Earl's Court tube station is a London Underground station in Earls Court. The station is located between Earls Court Road and Warwick Road . It is on the boundary of Travelcard Zone 1 and 2 and is in both zones....
via Cricklewood
Cricklewood railway station
Cricklewood railway station is in the London Borough of Barnet in North London. The station lies on the north-south Midland Main Line where it crosses Cricklewood Lane. It is served by First Capital Connect services as part of the Thameslink service...
, South Acton
South Acton railway station
South Acton railway station is in the London Borough of Ealing in South Acton, west London. It is on the North London Line, and the station and all trains serving it are operated by London Overground. It is in Travelcard Zone 3...
and Hammersmith.
The Super Outer Circle used existing rail lines and shared operations with the other services provided by the Midland and the other railway companies over whose tracks the service operated, except over the Acton Curve where it was the only passenger service (ever).
The service commenced operations on 5 May 1878. It ran north from St Pancras on the mainline to Cricklewood (then known as Childs Hill and Cricklewood) then, turning south-west, joined the tracks of the former Midland & South Western Joint Railway (now known as the Dudding Hill Line
Dudding Hill Line
The Dudding Hill Line is a railway line in north-west London running from Acton to Cricklewood. The line has no scheduled passenger service, no stations, no electrification, and a 30 mph speed limit with semaphore signalling, and is lightly used by freight and very occasional passenger charter...
) to connect with the North and South Western Junction Railway at Acton Wells Junction south of Willesden Junction
Willesden Junction station
Willesden Junction station is a Network Rail station in Harlesden, northwest London, UK. It is served by both London Overground and the Bakerloo line of the London Underground.-History:The station developed on three contiguous sites:...
. The route then passed through Acton Central
Acton Central railway station
Acton Central railway station is on the North London Line, between and , in Travelcard Zone 3. It is also where trains change power supply from OHLE to 3rd Rail or from 3rd rail to OHLE depending on direction of travel.-History:...
and South Acton
South Acton railway station
South Acton railway station is in the London Borough of Ealing in South Acton, west London. It is on the North London Line, and the station and all trains serving it are operated by London Overground. It is in Travelcard Zone 3...
before joining the London and South Western Railway
London and South Western Railway
The London and South Western Railway was a railway company in England from 1838 to 1922. Its network extended from London to Plymouth via Salisbury and Exeter, with branches to Ilfracombe and Padstow and via Southampton to Bournemouth and Weymouth. It also had many routes connecting towns in...
's (L&SWR's) Richmond
Richmond station (London)
Richmond station is a National Rail and London Underground station in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames in south west London which is managed by South West Trains....
branch via the Acton Curve, a now disused link close to Chiswick Park
Chiswick Park tube station
Chiswick Park is a London Underground station in Chiswick in west London. The station is served by the District Line and is between Turnham Green and Acton Town stations...
station. The Super Outer Circle then followed the L&SWR's tracks (now the London Underground's District Line
District Line
The District line is a line of the London Underground, coloured green on the Tube map. It is a "sub-surface" line, running through the central area in shallow cut-and-cover tunnels. It is the busiest of the sub-surface lines. Out of the 60 stations served, 25 are underground...
) to Hammersmith and then over the Metropolitan District Railway
Metropolitan District Railway
The Metropolitan District Railway was the predecessor of the District line of the London Underground. Set up on 29 July 1864, at first to complete the "Inner Circle" railway around central London, it was gradually extended into the suburbs...
(also now the District Line) to end at Earl's Court.
The route was not a commercial success as it served areas that were still relatively unpopulated and the demand for connections between outlying areas was not great. The MR ended the service on 30 September 1880.