History
The present Uckfield station opened in 1991 replacing the original structure which was sited 55 yards (50 m) to the south. With the closure of the line south to Lewes (where a junction allowed trains to continue on to Eastbourne or Brighton), the original station found itself stranded on the wrong side of a level crossing on the High Street which created traffic congestion whenever a train was arriving or departing from the station. The decision was therefore made to close the original station (which had been opened in 1868) and to open a new station on the other side of the road. The original station was demolished on 9 December 2000 after it had been damaged first by flooding and then by vandals.
Since 1986 there had been a campaign to re-open the line south of Uckfield through to Lewes, known as the Wealden Line, and has attracted cross-party support. In 2008 the "Wealdenlink" presentation was published which gave new impetus to the campaign for reinstatement. On 23 July 2008 the Central Rail Corridor Board (a joint group of local councils and stakeholders) commissioned study by Network Rail reported that there was not an economic case for reopening, citing a £141 million cost and an allegedly low "benefit-cost ratio" of 0.64 to 0.79 when a figure of 1.5 is the minimum required by the Department for Transport to make a scheme viable.
As part of Network Rail's national stations improvement programme, Uckfield received a new station building to replace the 1991 portakabin-type structure which was deemed "not fit for purpose". The new building was built to Network Rail's modular, pre-fabricated design used at Mitcham Eastfields and Greenhithe. The components for Uckfield's new station building - consisting of a ticket office, public toilet, staff accommodation, ticket hall and café - were manufactured by Britspace in Yorkshire and installed by contractors Bryen & Langley. The new building, which cost £750,000, was opened for passenger use on 16 March 2010.
Whereas the neighbouring East Grinstead line has electric trains, the Uckfield line is run only by diesel trains. It has been proposed many times that the line be electrified, but this is considered too expensive. Rail usage figures published in March 2010 show that journeys from the station have increased by 179% in five years.
Read more about this topic: Uckfield Railway Station
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