Steyning Line Trek Piccies from Agent Holmbush...
ABOVE: This is where the Steyning Line branched away from the main Brighton-Portsmouth Line. Unfortunately it was not possible for Ghost and Holmbush to take a closer look.
ABOVE: However, on crossing the road they soon came across this embankment which they were able to climb up on and walk back to where the original bridge was.
ABOVE: Looking towards Bramber & Steyning.
ABOVE: Looking towards Shoreham & Brighton.
ABOVE: Ballast beautiful ballast!
ABOVE: "We couldn't go over it, we couldn't go under it, we couldn't go through it so.... WE WENT ROUND IT!" Holmbush was quite upset at not being allowed to show off his limbo dancing skills again (see Cuckoo Line Part 2).
ABOVE: A set of buffers presumably from when the line was freight only to Upper Beeding Cement Works. This was from 1966 to 1981. Holmbush's late brother worked on the railway at Hove Station in the '70s and often acted as 'secondman' to the shunter there when a run to and from the Cement Works was required.
ABOVE: A view of the River Adur & Shoreham Airport from the trackbed. Shoreham Airport is the oldest licenced airfield in the UK and external shots of it were used in the film 'The Da Vinci Code'.
The two pictures (ABOVE TOP AND BOTTOM) show the remains of the Level Crossing adjacent to The Old Toll Bridge.
ABOVE: Watch the birdie.. an impressive sculpture made fron railway sleepers.
The 2 pictures ABOVE show where the railway passed under the Adur Flyover, although by then the line was freight only to and from the Cement Works. A short history is below.
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1970 A27 Shoreham (Adur) Flyover
Contractors McAlpines commenced construction of the new bridge (the flyover, as it has become known) on 1 February 1968.
It was one of the early box girder bridge design that had problems caused by the particular need to support the structure during construction. Subsequent strengthening was thought necessary, although the problem had arisen during and not after construction of another bridge.
The by-pass and flyover opened to through traffic in 1970. The first unofficial crossing by car was on 19 March 1970, the first traffic east to west from 14 May 1970 and both ways on 21 May 1970, although the slip roads did not open until July 1970.
ABOVE TOP AND BOTTOM: The differing gates of one of the various farm crossings to be found.
ABOVE: A drainage culvert in remarkably good condition.
ABOVE & RIGHT: A rail chair and fitting screws. Ghost & Holmbush were pleased to find these items as well as the very well preserved culvert in the previous picture.
ABOVE: The Old Cement Works along with any surviving trackwork would be seen around this bend.
ABOVE: Some of the surviving trackwork in the Cement works can be seen alongside and in front of the parked Bristol VRT bus. More can be seen in the 2 shots BELOW.
The above shots of railway track and the well-worn buffer stop were outside the Cement Works. Both Ghost and Holmbush feel that originally they were inside the Works. Track diagrams dating from 1931 which were passed to Holmbush for 'safe keeping' are not conclusive regards this mystery.
ABOVE: The line crossed over the River Adur at or around Beeding Signal Box by the Cement Works. There is no evidence of the signal box left to be seen nor anything resembling a railway bridge.
ABOVE: Looking back towards the Cement Works after rejoining the trackbed on the other side of the River Adur.
ABOVE: Looking back to where the line crossed what is now the Bramber Bypass from a different angle. Contrary to the camera angle, we hadn't found the pub at this point!!
ABOVE: These four pictures were taken at the approximate location of Bramber Station. Bramber was probably unique in having no goods sidings nor facilities. It has been suggested that had the line been reprieved from closure in 1966 Bramber Station would have been closed. It was located just over half a mile before Steyning Station. The bottom right hand picture of the four shows where the line continued to Steyning. Unfortunately nothing exists of Bramber Station today.
ABOVE: A Ghost Trains tradition is to end a trek in a pub and today was no exception. Copious amounts of cold Guinness was enjoyed by Ghost and Holmbush prior to catching the 2A back to Shoreham & Brighton.