Berry Hill
Why is it called Berry Hill? Despite the curse of being repetitious, let me pose some ideas. The obvious answer is that lots of berries used to grow on its verges. More folk however suggest that its provenance was 'bury', and there are of course both burial mound and graveyard near the top. Some folk think that the name relates to 'burgh', and there are, of course, settlements at both ends. Yet another suggestion is that it was originally 'Bray Hill', and before the Bath Road was built you might have gone down this road to the ferry at Bray. Maybe we’ll never know.
Burnham
This newsletter is not much given to advertising, but perhaps Burnham, which is our nearest village, deserves a mention. Burnham is not quite the sleepy place it used to be. There are two supermarkets, an excellent bookshop, and right in the middle, next to the health food shop, Susie Lipman (daughter of our present President) has recently opened a very superior art shop and gallery. Take a look for yourselves!
The Crossrail Project
Those of our members who think that there should be a reasonable rail service from Taplow Station might be advised to study the plans which are outlined in the Crossrail document (and the article on our website by Jon Wilmore - Ed).
The editor of this newsletter has already pointed out that if the railway track is electrified it may have visual effects that many would regret. However, the concern which I am now voicing is about the length of the trains. The document promises an improvement in rail service, which seems splendid, but it also mentions that the trains will be so long that the platform at Taplow (and many other stations) will have to be lengthened. The platforms at Taplow are already two hundred yards long, and the trains seldom use half that length; if the train lengths are doubled, it suggests to a person with a suspicious mind (meaning me) that there will be even fewer trains than there are now...
