Bluebell Railway progress

[STEVIEBOY1]

Good evening, I just wondered how the extention to East Grinstead is progressing. ? I think they have to clear the tip soon to avoid a hike in tax.

 

[DavyCrocket]

Indeed.

More waste removal is going on until December, when it stops owing to GBRF drivers being used on NR de-icing trains. Once there is enough room to run a track through, some GBRF trains carrying clay will run from the waste site to Horsted Keynes.

More money is still needed to complete the project , please visit the website!

 

[Express Link]

Take a look at the Bluebell Railways excellent website which gives the complete picture there is a video and photographs showing progress. The Bluebell have done a fantastic job in clearing the old rubbish tip. Whatever fool let thousands of tons of waste be dumped there in the first place?

Looking forward to the first through train.

 

[hammerwood]

there is also a very informative set of pages at http://www.philpot.me/cutting4.html . These are not official Bluebell updates, but give a good narrative on what has happened so far.

The link takes you to the latest update, so you will need to work back through the site to see earlier work from this year.

 

[PUFFINGBILLY]

Complete clearance of the cutting WILL be completed in time to avoid payment of landfill tax applicable as at 1st April 2012.
The trackbed then has to be prepared and track laid, and land adjacent made good and tidy. The signalling has been designed but of course has to be installed tested and all safety issues satisfied.
The station at E Grinstead and thus the connection to BR has already been constructed and in the mid/latter part of 2012 test trains and the occasional special service will run.
The new service to E Grinstead will not be timetabled until 2013, which will also include details of a joint initititave with the National Trust at Sheffield Park Gardens. An early indication of this will be mentioned in the 2012 timetable.

 

[mr_jrt]

...just a point I've not seen clarified anywhere.

How much will be cleared?

I've always read it as the tip being emptied...but noticed from the photos that they only seem to be clearing half the tip. Does this mean only a single line will ever be possible, or is this referring to the fact the cutting was widened before being filled with refuse?

This also seems backed up by this.

...that being the case, they seem to be taking out the eastern side of the tip - would this not make the line more curved than it would have been had the western side of the tip been removed?

 

[hammerwood]

The idea now is to clear enough out to get a single track through - so not necessarily the whole cutting. Doing the whole cutting would most likely take them beyond the April cut off for the tax exemption.

What there is a lot of though is clay/soil on the top - which will be taken south for use around the railway and most likely help form embankments to support a future Ardingly extension.

 

[PUFFINGBILLY]

The line from E Grinstead to Horsted Keynes was double track, thence to Lewes single.
The BBR has no plans or needs to replicate double track and thus EG to HK will be single.
Hopefully after the cutting has been cleared and the service to EG established there will be a period of consolidation and much needed improvements to the existing infrastructure and the huge back-log of engine and stock re-builds needed before the next and rather mad idea of re-creating the branch to Ardingly - boys playing trains v commercial common sense me thinks.

 

[Chris125]

...that being the case, they seem to be taking out the eastern side of the tip - would this not make the line more curved than it would have been had the western side of the tip been removed?

Apparently the eastern side of the cutting remains unchanged, whereas the west side was cut back potentially increasing the amount of waste to be removed.

Chris

 

[mr_jrt]

Apparently the eastern side of the cutting remains unchanged, whereas the west side was cut back potentially increasing the amount of waste to be removed.

Chris

Cheers, these are the little nuggets of information that complete the picture but often get left out of the main web pages

 

[Express Link]

boys playing trains v commercial common sense me thinks.

Thank goodness boys playing trains has won the day here and elsewhere and will continue to do so!

 

[PUFFINGBILLY]

An additional waste train is to run this side of Christmas as due to the mild weather and no need of snow clearance duties BR has a loco available.
This allows more time to complete the task before the 1st April 2012 deadline.
That said funds are still much needed.

 

[341o2]

Take a look at the Bluebell Railways excellent website which gives the complete picture there is a video and photographs showing progress. The Bluebell have done a fantastic job in clearing the old rubbish tip. Whatever fool let thousands of tons of waste be dumped there in the first place?

Looking forward to the first through train.

When the line was closed, attitudes were different. The trains were gone and that was that. Some even believed, when the initial stretch of the Bluebell was reopened that preservation of a standard gauge line was unfeasable.