Bluebell Railway to Haywards Heath

[goldstone]

Reckon there'll be there in 20 years.

First clear the rest of the dump at Imberhorne to finish the link to East Grinstead.

Then bridge the lane outside Horsted Keynes station where the viaduct used to be and extend to Ardingly.

Get running rights over the roadstone siding to Copyhold Junction.

Then extend the siding line all the way to Haywards Heath station. There's room to do it for the short length where there are only four tracks.

Bingo! The Bluebell Line has two main line connections.

So where's the Albion link? Well, when this is all completed East Grinstead Seagulls fans can take the train all the way to Falmer. Bluebell to Haywards Heath; Southern to Falmer.

 

[Colossal Squid]

Good thinking.

Grinstead is very removed from the rest of Sussex in terms of public transport. It's the only station on its line in the county

 

[saslowi]

Not long to wait then unless the nimbies get involved.

 

[Vatican Citys No.2 Keeper]

Well they were expecting to be at East Grinstead by the milenium as far as I recall, and we're still waiting!

 

[Return of the Rev]

Reckon there'll be there in 20 years.

First clear the rest of the dump at Imberhorne to finish the link to East Grinstead.

Then bridge the lane outside Horsted Keynes station where the viaduct used to be and extend to Ardingly.

Get running rights over the roadstone siding to Copyhold Junction.

Then extend the siding line all the way to Haywards Heath station. There's room to do it for the short length where there are only four tracks.

Bingo! The Bluebell Line has two main line connections.

So where's the Albion link? Well, when this is all completed East Grinstead Seagulls fans can take the train all the way to Falmer. Bluebell to Haywards Heath; Southern to Falmer.

take the train to the heath then on the mid sx gus bus

 

[Foster House]

Being a railway anorak this does excite me. The problem though, is that it is a steam railway and not a regular service. I suspect our friends in East Grinstead will not really benefit.

Now for the real anoraks here. I have a 1938 Bradshaws and looked up the times from East Grinstead to Falmer:

East Grinstead 12.07
Change at Lewes
Arrive Falmer 1.24

Do you suppose the ground was built 70 years to late................

 

[VAL1850]

Well they run steam trains to Royal Ascot - So why not Falmer

 

[Grendel]

It's been 25 years since planning permission was granted for the East Grinstead extension, and it's still nowhere near completion. I can't see an extension to Ardingly being completed in my lifetime.

 

[goldstone]

It's been 25 years since planning permission was granted for the East Grinstead extension, and it's still nowhere near completion. I can't see an extension to Ardingly being completed in my lifetime.

Depends how old you are!!!

 

[GT49er]

The problem though, is that it is a steam railway and not a regular service. I suspect our friends in East Grinstead will not really benefit.................

No reason why they can't run a daily service with diesel units.

 

[Lord Bracknell]

No reason why they can't run a daily service with diesel units.

Even the Romney Hythe & Dymchurch Railway manage that.

 

[Leekbrookgull]

Never really understood why the E/G to Three Bridges was pulled ? Just looked at the new build all along that route even as far as Forest Row.

 

[goldstone]

In the early 60s I used to ride my bike from Sharpthorne to Horsted Keynes Station and take the train to Haywards Heath (electric multiple units then). At HH change for a Hove train and walk to the Goldstone. Those were the days!

 

[Return of the Rev]

in the old days i would stand on the bank by sheffield park station and wave my underwear at the trains

 

[Pinkie Brown]

Never really understood why the E/G to Three Bridges was pulled ? Just looked at the new build all along that route even as far as Forest Row.

One of hundreds of shortsighted cut backs that proved to be a serious false economy. Slightly ironic the instigator of the culling of the railways, Dr Beeching, was a resident of East Grinstead.

 

[Leekbrookgull]

Beeching Way runs part of the old E/G to F/Row line (?)

 

[ken tiler]

Beeching Way runs part of the old E/G to F/Row line (?)

Some members of East Grinstead Council suggested it be called Beeching Cut.

 

[BensGrandad]

Why all the fuss about the Bluebell railway as a tourist attraction and novelty it is good as a viable means of transport it will never be a success.

 

[West Hoathly Seagull]

Isn't it funny? I was going to post a thread tonight asking whether Dr Beeching had had an adverse effect on the Albion with all his closures. At one time, I could have walked (well, during the summer months at least), from my house to West Hoathly Station, and caught a train to either Haywards Heath or Lewes, and then gone on from there. We can see the Bluebell trains from our landing window and hear them very frequently during the summer.

Now, from up here all we have is East Grinstead, which only gives access to London or Croydon - to get to Brighton one has to go to Three Bridges. I do wonder if that is one reason there are probably more Palace fans in East Grinstead than Albion, and so many other London team supporters. Without a major marketing effort from the Albion, why would a youngster in East Grinstead support them? I used to be an armchair Spurs fan at one time, though that was largely because my mates at Ardingly mostly were, and I suspect many others are in the same category. Most of the towns around Brighton have decent rail access (the only ones I can think of that don't are Uckfield and Ringmer, which never had a rail link, in the East, and Steyning and Henfield in the East), but much of north Sussex is not well connected. I would be interested in opinions on this, but getting to Falmer could be something of a pain for me, which Withdean is currently not.

As for the Bluebell, there was talk of extending the line to Ardingly, to connect up with the Network Rail tracks, but I don't think the Bluebell would ever be allowed into Haywards Heath, as it is far too busy. The Worthing and Eastbourne trains now use Platform 1, which would be the only one that could be used. Presumably that was the platform used by the Horsted Keynes shuttles which used to run. The line through to Horsted Keynes was even electrified.

 

[goldstone]

As for the Bluebell, there was talk of extending the line to Ardingly, to connect up with the Network Rail tracks, but I don't think the Bluebell would ever be allowed into Haywards Heath, as it is far too busy. The Worthing and Eastbourne trains now use Platform 1, which would be the only one that could be used. Presumably that was the platform used by the Horsted Keynes shuttles which used to run. The line through to Horsted Keynes was even electrified.

I believe it could happen in the future. The Bluebell Railway already owns the trackbed from Horsted Keynes to Ardingly. They used soil from the Imberhorne tip to build up the embankment towards the site of the old Sherriff Mill viaduct and have bought a bridge structure to use across Sherriff Mill Lane. They then need to do a deal with the roadstone company to give them access to Ardingly station and with Network Rail to use what is now the siding to Copyhold Junction. The siding line already operates as a separate line for probably a third of the way from the junction towards Haywards Heath station and from that point there is room alongside the operating tracks for it to be extended all the way to the station at which point the Bluebell could build its own platform in the area that is now the station car park.

Sorted!