New railway link to London

[Norman Potting]

The serious obstacles to providing adequate capacity between Brighton and London are in the Croydon area. No amount of extra line capacity in Sussex is going to overcome the problem until this is sorted out.

Seconded. I think the crux of the BML2 project seeks to address this by carving a humungously expensive route through South London and using part of an old route that is already being used by Croydon Tramlink. It would use a reopened Uckfield - Lewes link which would be fine for going direct to Eastbourne (unless you wanted to demolish large parts of Lewes in the vicinity of Boots) but would need a change to get to Brighton. Veering swiftly off to anorak land I did see a report many years ago that suggested diverting the Lewes - Uckfield bit on to a brand new route via Ringmer to make a 3 way junction near Glynde so that trains could run east or westbound. Perhaps Lord B may be aware of that?

Much as I love trains, and would love to catch one from TN6 to Falmer the wondrous expression from Wayne's World, "....and monkeys may fly out of my b*tt" springs to mind for all of these plans.

 

[Blue Valkyrie]

Doesn't BML2 create a link from Brighton to Tonbridge?

That would be truely ace for match travel, for any that live there or in Tunbridge Wells.

 

[HawkTheSeagull]

On a serious note what has happened the past four months or so? It has seriously deteriorated and its debatable if its now fit for service. At one point, for 2-3 weeks, it seemed it was carnage every day. I feel for you guys.

Well ever since the Olympics have finished there aren't as many on call staff to get things fixed quicker I believe, which isn't good enough, that and more people tend to jump in front of train in the Winter for some reason.

 

[Tricky Dicky]

On a serious note what has happened the past four months or so? It has seriously deteriorated and its debatable if its now fit for service. At one point, for 2-3 weeks, it seemed it was carnage every day. I feel for you guys.

There was a really bad period when it seemed to be every day, but until this week, we've not had a problem for several weeks.

 

[Herr Tubthumper]

until this week, we've not had a problem for several weeks.

I hear you brother. But this reply is telling of the low public expectation now placed on the rail system.

 

[Norman Potting]

Doesn't BML2 create a link from Brighton to Tonbridge?

That would be truely ace for match travel, for any that live there or in Tunbridge Wells.

Assuming they took over the Spa Valley Railway and came to some agree with Sainsbury to knock down a part of their store built over the route. Unfortunately it all went wrong with lines north of Lewes around 1968 (Beeching had nothing to do with it) and much as I would like to see the wrongs righted I cannot see it happening.

 

[Screaming J]

Seconded. I think the crux of the BML2 project seeks to address this by carving a humungously expensive route through South London and using part of an old route that is already being used by Croydon Tramlink. It would use a reopened Uckfield - Lewes link which would be fine for going direct to Eastbourne (unless you wanted to demolish large parts of Lewes in the vicinity of Boots) but would need a change to get to Brighton. Veering swiftly off to anorak land I did see a report many years ago that suggested diverting the Lewes - Uckfield bit on to a brand new route via Ringmer to make a 3 way junction near Glynde so that trains could run east or westbound. Perhaps Lord B may be aware of that?

Much as I love trains, and would love to catch one from TN6 to Falmer the wondrous expression from Wayne's World, "....and monkeys may fly out of my b*tt" springs to mind for all of these plans.

No, the latest plan as I understand it, is to branch off the Brighton- Lewes line somewhere near Kingston, tunnel under the Downs, come out somewhere S of Offham and then link up with the old Lewes - Uckfield line somewhere near Hamsey.

But this is still monkeys fly out of butt land if you ask me.

 

[kevo]

Given how many millions (billions?) they are spending on the new London to Birmingham line, which isn't even needed, if the Brighton mainline problems could be resolved by restoring a seven-mile link between Lewes and Uckfield, it's a no-brainer really.

 

[Lord Bracknell]

Veering swiftly off to anorak land I did see a report many years ago that suggested diverting the Lewes - Uckfield bit on to a brand new route via Ringmer to make a 3 way junction near Glynde so that trains could run east or westbound. Perhaps Lord B may be aware of that?

Yes indeedy. That was one of the options that emerged from a study commissioned by East Sussex County Council in my time there. The problem that the study was looking at was the fact that there really isn't enough land available in Uckfield to drive a two-track railway over the A26 and through the Bellbrook Industrial Estate without demolishing/relocating a significant number of businesses (and adding significantly to the costs of a Lewes - Uckfield link). The route via Glynde would have entered Uckfield from the east (with a reversing movement required at Uckfield Station) and would have avoided the need to rebuild a level crossing over Uckfield High Street.

Curiously, there was a mid-nineteenth century plan to build a branch line to Ringmer, leaving the main line at Glynde. It never happened - although someone speculatively built a Railway Hotel at Ringmer - which is still there; it's called Heron House and is on the road from Ringmer to Laughton.

 

[Screaming J]

Curiously, there was a mid-nineteenth century plan to build a branch line to Ringmer, leaving the main line at Glynde. It never happened - although someone speculatively built a Railway Hotel at Ringmer - which is still there; it's called Heron House and is on the road from Ringmer to Laughton.

Sincere thanks for that. I'd never been able to work out why that Pub had that name - although it closed when I was much too young to have gone in it!

 

[Paskman]

Sincere thanks for that. I'd never been able to work out why that Pub had that name - although it closed when I was much too young to have gone in it!

Yes Heron House used to be the Hare and Hounds pub. Good play on words I always thought. It closed in the early 1970s. I used to live in Neaves Lane, Ringmer; which is next to where the railway would have been.