Borehamwood: Elstree Tunnels Airshafts

Image: © Nigel Cox Taken: 7 Mar 2015

Viewed from the A411 Barnet Lane these are two of the airshafts on the former Midland Railway's Elstree Tunnels. The airshafts are about 30 metres apart giving some idea of the separation between the two tunnel bores. The railway was originally opened in 1868 with just one tunnel bore and the nearer red brick airshaft is over that tunnel, so is presumably contemporary with it. Shortly after, and certainly by 1898 as it is shown on the Ordnance Survey map of the time, the second tunnel was built to cope with increased railway traffic, and the far darker brick airshaft is on the newer bore. Given that the ground level on the A411 here is about 119 metres above sea level and that it is about 92 metres in the vicinity of Elstree and Borehamwood Station one would guess that the tunnel track level is roughly about 25 metres down from the ground level at the airshafts. Additional details provided by John Webb: "For your information, the Slow line tunnel was opened to traffic on the 23rd June 1895."

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