Editing Great Western Railway (section)

==Track==
{{Main|Baulk road}}
[[File:Baulk road crossing.jpg|thumb|right|alt=Three rails cross the picture from left to right supported on thick timbers; occasional smaller timbers cross between these and stone chippings fill the space between them.|Baulk road track]]
For the [[permanent way (history)|permanent way]] Brunel decided to use a light bridge rail continuously supported on thick timber baulks, known as "[[baulk road]]". Thinner timber transoms were used to keep the baulks the correct distance apart. This produced a smoother track and the whole assembly proved cheaper than using conventional sleepers for broad-gauge track, although this advantage was lost with standard- or mixed-gauge lines because of the higher ratio of timber to length of line. More conventional track forms were later used, although baulk road could still be seen in sidings in the first half of the twentieth century.{{sfn|Lewis |2009|pages=143–149}}
{{Clear}}