Lawley Street, a little further out. In the earliest days this was acceptable; the hilly nature of the centre of Birmingham would have been difficult for early railways to approach, and interchange, particularly between the L&BR and the GJR, were simplified by their proximity. As railway traffic developed, and it became clearer what the dominant traffic flows were, the limitations of this configuration became important, and led to a number of proposed changes. The earliest railways generally limited themselves to connecting pairs or small groups of major centres, but soon the benefit of amalgamations became apparent, so that larger companies serving larger areas began to develop. This led to the formation of (among others) two large groups with significant presences in Birmingham: the Midland Railway, formed on 10 May 1844, with a network from Leeds to Derby and Nottingham, and on to Rugby, and by leases to Gloucester and Bristol in 1845; and the London and North Western Railway on 16 July 1846, connecting London, Manchester and Liverpool. In August 1845, the Oxford, Worcester and Wolverhampton Railway (OW&WR) was obtaining authorisation to build its line. This was a competitive threat to the established railways, but serious financial problems delayed the progress of the OW&WR. Eventually it became aligned with the Great Western Railway (GWR), but that remained in the future for the time being. As well as these organisational changes, practical difficulties were becoming important in handling traffic that did not start or end its journey in Birmingham, and the Curzon Street stations became a difficult obstruction to such traffic. The formation of the LNWR eliminated a competitive tension that had existed (between the London and Birmingham Railway and the Grand Junction Railway); at the same time the LNWR and the Midland Railway did not see themselves as direct competitors, so that a collaborative approach now seemed possible. The core network Authorisation: Dudley, Walsall and northwards Walsall and Dudley were important manufacturing towns, and it was to be expected that a railway connection between them would be put forward. The South Staffordshire Junction Railway was proposed to connect the two towns, with junction connections to the Grand Junction Railway, now to be part of the LNWR. The SSJR got its authorising Act of Parliament on 3 August 1846, with permitted share capital of £525,000. At the same time, another company, the Trent Valley, Midlands and Grand Junction Railway was authorised.