Ladies & Gentlemen,i give you the Bluebell Railway.

[Tom Bombadil]

That would seem to make more sense than HH which is well served by trains.

It's a heritage line, it's not public transport.

 

[Kent Seagull]

East Grinstead Station in the late 1950s. The loco is preserved on the Bluebell today. if you look closely at the posters on the notice board, the one on the bottom left is advertising football specials to Hove!

 

[Return of the Rev]

Sorry but I cannot see 1 good reason why they should spend the money it would cost to take the line through to Haywards Heath what would be the benefit?

The spoons express

 

[Lethargic]

B/B railway have 11,000 members have a Heart or money. H/H is next.

And eventually new tracks all the way to the Amex our very own private transport system ......nice!

 

[Pinkie Brown]

You would be able to go to EG Sainsburys direct by train, making a change to shopping at the HH one. And EG has a Wetherspoons!

Or if he fancies a change of scene - Change at EG, up to Oxted, down to Eridge, then onto the steam railway that terminates next to the Tunbridge Wells Sainsbury. Just for good measure to keep BG happy - I believe the old West Station at TW has been turned into a pub, owned by one of the national chains? A nice Spoons, Toby Carvery, or Beefeater Inn to keep BG happy?

 

[Pinkie Brown]

And eventually new tracks all the way to the Amex our very own private transport system ......nice!

A long time ago in another age when the planning battle was warming up, a public meeting was held at Sussex University, chaired by Paul Samrah, Dick Knight & Martin Perry.

One nutcase stood up & asked MP if as part of the planning schedule, the club would include a commitment to fund the missing link between Lewes & Uckfield?! Whilst it would of course been useful for shipping people to & from The Amex, Perry pointed out he was in the business of building football stadia, not railways.

 

[Leekbrookgull]

Lewes,would be 'romantic' (?) however H/K and the line to H/H up to Ardlingly is B/B owned (?) Therefore surely it is down to 'Roadstone' and how long they use the link ?

 

[drew]

Although he died 15 years ago and was before I met my wife so I never knew him, my father in law was on the Extension committee for many years and would have loved to have seen it finally open. Been a long time coming.

 

[Norman Potting]

Or if he fancies a change of scene - Change at EG, up to Oxted, down to Eridge, then onto the steam railway that terminates next to the Tunbridge Wells Sainsbury. Just for good measure to keep BG happy - I believe the old West Station at TW has been turned into a pub, owned by one of the national chains? A nice Spoons, Toby Carvery, or Beefeater Inn to keep BG happy?

The old West Station is now a "Smith and Western" cowboy themed restaurant which I am sure most real ale (and real food) lovers would wish to avoid like the plague! However in a few years time the Kent and East Sussex Railway will hopefully run right through to Robertsbridge and Kent Seagull will then be able to travel all the way to Sheffield Park from Tenterden (another town wasted on Kent, lovely little place) with just a modest peregrination between the two TW stations. Hoping to visit the Bluebell for a ride sometime over Easter.

 

[goldstone]

I went to East Grinstead on Sunday and took the train to Horsted Keynes and back. Great to see the line restored. I moved to Sharpthorne in 1957 just as the line closed so never got to use it.

Bloody cold on Sunday which is why numbers using the trains were lower than I had expected. Also Network Rail had decided in their wisdom that it would be a good weekend to close the line between E.G. and London which must have put off some people from coming down by train from London.

 

[Pavilionaire]

Great news, we took the parents out for a meal on the Bluebell Railway and announced to them we were expecting our first child. Happy times! Looking forward to going to EG now.

 

[34064 Fighter Command]

Not my video but I'll link it here:

 

[Kent Seagull]

The old West Station is now a "Smith and Western" cowboy themed restaurant which I am sure most real ale (and real food) lovers would wish to avoid like the plague! However in a few years time the Kent and East Sussex Railway will hopefully run right through to Robertsbridge and Kent Seagull will then be able to travel all the way to Sheffield Park from Tenterden (another town wasted on Kent, lovely little place) with just a modest peregrination between the two TW stations. Hoping to visit the Bluebell for a ride sometime over Easter.

I hadn't thought of that! There's a great train ride for the future! I was thinking of driving to T Wells and catching the train from there to Sheffield Park next week.

 

[Barry Izbak]

I took a trip on the Bluebell yesterday and i was amazed by how deep that Imberhorne cutting is?
I am a member of the Bluebell and have been following the extention project closely but nothing I have seen really shown how deep that cutting is.

Amazing - well done everyone

 

[BlockDpete]

Would be great if they could re open the line from EG back to Three Bridges.

Most of the track bed is there, plus one station. Though would mean knocking down a lot of Crawley Down.

 

[Cheshire Cat]

Though would mean knocking down a lot of Crawley Down.

There's a silver lining to every cloud.

 

[Leekbrookgull]

Would be great if they could re open the line from EG back to Three Bridges.

Most of the track bed is there, plus one station. Though would mean knocking down a lot of Crawley Down.

Commonsense years ago would have said keep the E/G to T/B via C/D & Rowfant under British Rail/Network Rail ownership whether by rail or road most has been Westbound.

 

[GT49er]

They WILL get to H/H. It will take time,but they will get there.

Sorry to disillusion you, but they will never get to Haywards Heath, sadly. There is no way that network rail - or anybody else - would give them running powers over the intensively used electrified couple of miles from Copyhold Junction into Haywards Heath.

 

[Leekbrookgull]

Sorry to disillusion you, but they will never get to Haywards Heath, sadly. There is no way that network rail - or anybody else - would give them running powers over the intensively used electrified couple of miles from Copyhold Junction into Haywards Heath.

Good point,thats the issue with so much of the Southern,most is double track but rammed to capcity. Maybe a Sunday only service is possible ?

 

[GT49er]

It's a heritage line, it's not public transport.

It could be both - they could run a couple of commuter trains morning and evening to and from Sheffield Park to connect with mainline(!) services at East Grinsted. That might (or might not) be commercially viable.