The Abbey Flyer is the common name of the railway service from St Albans to Watford (both in Hertfordshire, England). The service is presently part of Silverlink's Metro service, but was formerly operated by British Rail. Until 1948 it was controlled by the London Midland and Scottish, which had got it as part of the London and North Western Railway at the Grouping. At any given time, there is only a single train on the line, as it is single track along its entire length. There was once a passing loop at Bricket Wood, but this has long since been removed. The service is operated these days by three-coach electric multiple units, but previously by diesel multiples - I once rode in the cab of one of these, when very young, and got to blow the whistle - and prior to that, tank engines.

Persistent rumour tells of a plan to run through trains from St Albans Abbey to London Euston, but this never materialises. The train passes any given point on the line in each direction every three-quarters of an hour, and the journey from one end to the other takes about twenty minutes. St Albans Abbey is these days a dead end, and one must take a bus to the town centre or St Albans City station. Watford Junction, on the other hand, remains a major centre. Change there for London, Birmingham, Liverpool, Manchester and Glasgow, with Silverlink or Virgin Trains.

  St Albans Abbey
         |
    Park Street
         |
     How Wood
         |
    Bricket Wood
         |
      Garston
         |
   Watford North
         |
  Watford Junction

Thanks to Albert Herring for the information about the pre-nationalisation ownership of the line.

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