 These projects were disrupted and delayed by World War II, but in 1954 the first mainline electric railway in northern Britain was completed from Sheffield Victoria to Manchester London Road via the Woodhead route, using 1500 V DC overhead.This line approached London Road from the east and although it was equipped with the same electrification system as the MSJ&AR and had its own fleet of 1500 V DC suburban EMUs (later to be classified as Class 506), the two electric lines were never connected at London Road and the two types of EMU never ventured onto each other's territory.In common with most railway routes, passenger traffic on the MSJ&AR declined significantly in the 1960s as travel patterns changed and more people had access to private cars.