Imberhorne Viaduct
Imberhorne Viaduct | |
---|---|
Lewes and East Grinstead Railway | |
Construction start | 1880 |
Opened | 1882 |
Rebuilt | 1992 |
Statistics | |
Daily traffic | heritage railway |
Location | |
Imberhorne Viaduct is a
Construction and operation
Built to span the lands of Imberhorne Farm, it was designed and engineered by
Opened in 1882, and also known as Hill Place Viaduct, it carried the Lewes and East Grinstead Railway south from East Grinstead to Kingscote, and onwards to Lewes.
Closure and listing
After the closure of the Lewes and East Grinstead Line south from East Grinstead in 1958, the track on the viaduct remained in place to allow the stabling of carriages.[2] Imberhorne cutting located south of the viaduct was designated as a domestic rubbish dump, and infilled with waste during the 1970s.[3] After various local residents requested the demolition of the decaying viaduct, the structure was listed from 15 September 1988.[1]
Reopening
In 1992, after British Rail had closed the carriage sidings and undertaken required emergency repair work to the whole structure, the viaduct was donated to the Bluebell Railway Preservation Society.[2] Further renovation was undertaken subsequently, including waterproofing the deck, brickwork repairs and repointing.[2]
After reaching Kingscote in 1994, the Bluebell Railway Society undertook renovation of the section to reconnect the line with East Grinstead. After negotiation with the council over sharing the costs of removing accumulated rubbish from Imberhorne cutting, the Society relaid track across the viaduct south to allow removal of the rubbish north via Network Rail, to be reburied in Oxfordshire.
On 7 March 2013 the Bluebell Railway was reconnected with East Grinstead and the viaduct is now in regular use for passenger trains. The first scheduled service ran across the viaduct on 23 March 2013, following 55 years of disuse.[4]
Television appearance
Imberhorne Viaduct was used during the filming of the
The Viaduct appears in the Mercedes Benz Smart Forfour advert. The car-train hybrid is shown driving over the viaduct using the rail line, now owned by the Bluebell Railway.[5]
References
- ^ a b c d "Imberhorne or East Grinstead Viaduct, East Grinstead". BritishListedBuildings.co.uk. Retrieved 10 February 2013.
- ^ a b c d e "Imberhorne Viaduct". Semgonline.com. Retrieved 10 February 2013.
- ^ "Bluebell Railway races to clear rubbish from cutting". BBC News. 31 May 2011. Retrieved 25 March 2024.
- ^ "Bluebell Railway to complete extension by March". BBC news. 9 September 2012.
- ^ MOTOR1 (29 June 2015), Smart forrail presentation, retrieved 21 February 2016
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