The Seaford branch line is a rural railway line in East Sussex constructed in 1864 primarily to serve the port of Newhaven and the town of Seaford. It now sees fairly regular trains across the line except for the branch to the closed Newhaven Marine station.
History
Engineered by the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway's Chief Engineer Frederick Banister,[1] the first section of the line was opened in 1847 to aid the transport of goods to and from Newhaven. The line was extended in 1864 to serve the holiday town of Seaford.[2] There used to be extensive sidings at Newhaven Docks and even a railway swing bridge over the River Ouse to connect to the other side. These have now been removed or have become overgrown, as has the defunct Newhaven Marine station, which has been fenced off from the public. Once a thriving station serving ferries to and from France, the walk of just under 1/4 mile to Newhaven Harbour station and the cessation of winter ferries forced its closure. The line was electrified (750 VDCthird rail) by the Southern Railway in 1935. The line between Newhaven Harbour and Seaford was reduced to single track to save costs in 1975.
Route
Services, generally originating from Brighton, stop at Lewes on the East Coastway Line, the last station before the branch line splits off.
The branch line starts at Southerham Junction on the East Coastway Line.
The line then continues, running alongside the River Ouse to Newhaven Town, which is the station serving the town centre of Newhaven, across a swing bridge over the nearby river.
Immediately after Newhaven Harbour station, a small branch splits off to Newhaven Marine, which was closed to passengers in August 2006 but remained technically open until October 2020.[3][4] Originally built to link with cross-channel ferries, this short branch line is now closed to passengers, but occasional freight trains still use the sidings, as well as a small number of passenger trains terminating at Newhaven Harbour using the branch line to reverse.
The line then becomes a single-track and is one of a few single-track third-rail lines in the country.
It passes the closed station of Bishopstone Beach Halt, and over a foot crossing that offers access to the abandoned village of Tide Mills.
The line then straightens out and calls at two more stations.
Currently, there are no regular direct services from the branch line towards London, with passengers needing to change at Lewes in order to travel towards Gatwick Airport and London Victoria.
Passenger volume
Comparing the number of passengers in year beginning April 2002 to the year beginning April 2010, Southease has increased by 96%, Newhaven Town by 45%, Bishopstone by 58% and Seaford by 56%. Newhaven Harbour has declined by 51%.[6]
The annual passenger usage is based on sales of tickets in stated financial years from Office of Rail and Road estimates of station usage. The statistics are for passengers arriving and departing from each station and cover twelve-month periods that start in April. Methodology may vary year on year. Usage from the periods 2019-20 and especially 2020-21 onwards have been affected by the Covid-19 pandemic
