Joe Brown's credentials as a highly-rated railway cartographer were established with his superb London Rail Atlas, the fifth edition of which has just been published. He now turns his attention to one of the most interesting and complex railway landscapes outside the capital, that around the Liverpool to Manchester axis. To emphasis the scope and complexity of this undertaking, this new atlas will have more map pages than the London Rail Atlas. The content embraces much more than the railways of the two cities in the title; it covers most of the historic county of Lancashire and other areas outside of this. In addition to lines and locations within the current boundaries of Merseyside and Greater Manchester, the book extends to include places such as Blackpool, Fleetwood, Preston, Blackburn, Burnley, Colne, Chorley, Warrington, Chester, Northwich and Buxton. As well as the railway network to the railways, the atlas will also map the many tramway systems which once flourished in the area. The index to the maps alone will be in excess of 70 pages in extent. This will be a splendid addition to our growing and popular range of railway atlases, the publication of the first edition of the Liverpool & Manchester Atlas will be eagerly anticipated by many railway enthusiasts.
