Decade of Steam 1950's DVD During the 1950s - which is the decade covered by this, the fourth in a series of five 100%archive film programmes - the steam locomotive was seen as an anachronism which had to be replaced by 'modern' power. However, British Railways had over 20,000 steam engines at the beginning of the decade, to which it added a further 999 examples - the well known Standard types. This programme traces the last full decade of steam locomotive development by examining each of the regions of British Railways, and setting the scene for steam's final years.