1/ I'm frequently confounded by the fawning over Brunel. I don't deny he was an inspiration, and achieved many things. Yet, much of what he did lost money, his projects were over-engineered and/or impractical, he was a very poor mechanical http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-bristol-43323013

2/ engineer and contractors would not work with him because of his controlling character. Moreover, there is a lot of 'great man' history in descriptions of him, when the context is important. The GWR was conceived by Bristol businessmen, who were looking to revive the port. They

3/ had up until that point -given many of them were on the local authorities of Bristol -let it go to pot. Vested interests in the existing facilities meant that new facilities were not built down the Avon, leading to decline. So, a group of insular and naive businessmen, let a

4/ man who promised them everything build a broad gauge line which cost a bomb (GWR capital costs per mile were double the nearest company), & which re-enforced Bristol's insulation at a time when the nation was becoming more networked via standard gauge.Whatever the merits of BG

5/ tech, this was simply not an astute business step when standard gauge was, well, standard. Indeed, Bristol continued to decline, and only after 1900, and the demise of broad gauge, did it thrive again. What's more population growth was lower along the GWR main line compared to

6/ other main lines coming out of London. I get why Brunel is famous; his own PR. But it was mostly bluster and loss-making projects. When it comes to the railways - which I know - I wish we could talk about Joseph Locke far more, who built things on time and to budget, but also

7/ gave us the track we use today (created for the London & South Western Railway). Or what about Thomas Brassey the contractor, whose company by 1847 had built 1/3 of all UK railways and by his death in 1870 had built 1/20 of all the world's?

8/ Can we talk more about Henry Barlow who designed the St Pancras trainshed? All these individuals were practical engineers who, considered in the context of their time, delivered what was asked of them. Then there are the notable managers and directors; Huish who gave us the

9/ first forms of modern management; Glynn who helped set up the Railway Clearing House and led to the industry's technical and operational standardisation; Watkin who controlled a railway empire and was a dreamer; Fay who was the first railway official to understand the power

10/ of marketing. Ultimately, there are so many more people to talk about within and outside the railway industry before 1914, who - within their context, and for good and ill - were important in shaping our world in more profound ways than Brunel. But all get

11/ overshadowed by him, and Brunel is always taken out of his historical context and put up on a pedestal. I am not saying he had no legacy; he has inspired generations of engineers and had major achievements. All I am saying can we please be more realistic about his work, his

12/ actions and position in the history of transport and mobility.