Study to assess potential to re-open Lewes-Uckfield railway line

Date: 14/5/2013

A study to analyse the possible benefits of re-opening the railway line between Lewes and Uckfield has been commissioned by the Secretary of State for Transport.

Patrick McLoughlin said that while there is a recognised need to increase capacity between London and the South Coast, linking the two Sussex towns could potentially help to address wider travel issues in the South-East.

"I am alive to local interest in re-opening this line and wider concerns about rail capacity between London and the South Coast and this is why I have commissioned this study," he explained.

"It will help us to understand exactly what the issues are and build upon previous work that has looked at these questions."

Under the Government's existing rail investment strategy, increased capacity between Uckfield and London Bridge is expected to be secured through the introduction of more carriages on the route between now and 2019.

The line that initially linked Lewes and Uckfield was closed in 1969.

Posted by Mary Treen

Transport News, Transport Consulting News and TRL Ltd