Spa Valley and Eridge

nice pic
i like the way they all seem to be waving at the southern service
reminds me of a pic i took of Paul McKinniel posing on the E4 when it visited

 

Latest progress with the Eridge extention.
Pictures taken by Brian Halford

 

Latest Pictures of the extension work, The works are approaching completion and they are now working at birchden at the point where NR meet Spa valley Railway.

daz

 

Err - not wishing to shatter the warm illusion, but I would guess that the Gramm Interlink lot are acknowledging the drivers warning blast!

 

Oh , i thought they were just being polite and waving ](*,)

 

Pictures by Brian Halford

 

Walked past with my dad as you were all sitting down taking a break. Looks like you're doing a grand job!

 

Great news - keep the momentum going and you appear to be well on the way!

I visited Eridge many, many moons ago whilst going through the King & Barnes ale trail - there is (was?) a pub on the old main road close to the station and sometime in the early 90s I had my mandatory pint and went to the station. Even then, you had done your best restoring what BR had grudgingly left behind and set up a small shop to raise funds.

Will have to make the visit again sometime soon - is the pub still trading?

 

Oh , i thought they were just being polite and waving ](*,)[/quote:1xg4lago]

Sometimes they'll blow an air horn to make sure everyone waves at the train.

 

The Huntsman is indeed still open for business, I was about 6 or 7 at the time, but I remember the little shop too. Along with the 50 in the bay platform. The gentleman running the shop was very good at giving my dad and myself good info about any specials that were running, I recall the Royal Alex on a special, possibly with some inspection cars, through there one day.

 

I'm surprised to still see the old double track at birchden junction!
The curve off the Spa round to parallel the NR looks quite tight? or is it just the camera angle?

 

I think the camera angle makes it worse then it acctually is.

 

When BR removed Birchden they simply took out the pointwork, put in a straight track panel on the side they used and left the rest. All the Spa did to connect up was a bit of slewing and put in a track panel themselves. So everything that didn't really need to be removed wasn't.

The alignment of the track is the original one from the Groombridge down to the Eridge down.

 

I've been looking at the various pictures of Eridge, and the work on the extension and have to say well done guy, it looks great. Eridge will eventually be a lovely station when fully restored. With regards to the bay platform, are there any plans to bring it into use as a run around loop? I'm sure provision could be made to allow access to the carpark, something that could be closed off when a loco is in the loop. Obviously it would mean modifications to the platform, but I can't imagine that it would be all that hard. Seems a shame to have a half built run round loop, and not be able to use it properly.
Daniel

 

Daniel,

We have looked into possible solutions with the access on to Eridge station platform but as yet no definite plans have been drawn up for this.

As things stand, we are planning to operate trains into the former down main platform in a top and tail fashion. If you have riden on the Spa Valley to Birchden Junction, trains will initially be an extension of that operation. Part of the bay platform will be brought up to standard soon so that we can stand engines over and stable a tanker for water replenishment there. Therefore the current access at the end of the bay road will remain.

As for a run round, I'm afraid that it is not in the current plans, although it may happen in the medium term, as this will make the operation easier and less labour intensive. At the moment, we are keen just to extend to Eridge and prove to the doubters that we can do this and run a reliable operation.

Unfortunately, it is a lot easier said than done to restore the run-round loop. There is a lot of "red tape" to go through. There is a lot of discussions with Network Rail, Southern and the HMRI to be carried out to find a suitable solution that meets everybody's approval, before anything can even happen. Then the Spa Valley has to raise the funds to have Network Rail approved contractors come in and undertake the works. This is not cheap and the intial extension to Eridge is depleting the extension fund and we will need to raise the funds for this extra works.

If the original £500,000 had been raised then, the situation maybe a lot different.

I hope this answers your question.

Matt

 

I think we've just found a suitable home for the soon to be removed traverser at Brockenhurst...

http://steve-clark.fotopic.net/p51199883.html

http://ronstruttsrailwaypics.fotopic.net/p44237041.html

With a ramp constructed at the car park end, it could also provide disabled access to the Spa Valley station.

Any thoughts?

 

What is the current listing of Operational steam at the Spa Valley?

With the extension would be good to see a tender loco operational and owned by the line!

 

There are currently 3 engines in traffic on the line. They are as follows:-

LMS Jinty 47493
GWR Pannier Tank 7715 (on a 14 month visit until September 2009)
Peckett "Fonmon" - to be withdrawn for a 10 year overhaul in September 2009

Soon to follow out of the stable are TKh "Spartan" - hopefully entering traffic in early 2009 and RSH "Ugly", hopefully entering service around the same time.

That will give us a good quantity of big engines capable of hauling the Eridge services which will initially be top and tailed with a diesel. Being foreign, it's not known how Spartan will fair with NR and therefore is not currently in the Eridge plans. However it will be able to operate Groombridge only services and driver experience days, both of which we will be operating at times.

As for a tender engine, the society's funds are being directed purely at the extension and so locomotive purchase is currently out of the question, although we are in discussion with some locomotive owners at the moment, so watch this space.

Matt

 

Thanks for your comprehensive answer Matt. Please keep up the good work, its nice to see another LBSCR branch in use. Hopefully, in the fullness of time, Eridge can be fully restored, and will make an impressive junction station, much as Horsted Keynes is.
Daniel

 

I second that, the Spa Valley have done a remarkable amount in a short space ot time, well done lads and lasses.

Chris W.