The Horsham to Guildford Branch - Closed 1965

[@roderickmoore3113]

I was a fireman on the last train over the Horsham Branch on the Sunday after the normal service had finished the day before. It was a special train headed by two Q1 locomotives 33006, and 33027 hauling ten coaches. We stopped for a while at Baynards while a lot of passengers went to the pub. Going through Cranleigh we exploded about a 100 detonators that had been laid on the track. The driver was not informed that we were booked to stop at Guildford, so the Guard applied the brake to bring to us a stand at London Road station on the New line via Effingham Junction, so that must have been the last steam passenger train to leave that station. Joining the main line at Hampton Court Junction, we had a clear road, and were doing a good seventy passing New Maldon.( Q1s 0-6-0s war time austerity locos were also known as Charies or coffee pots were supposed to be restricted to a maximum speed of 55mph. One of my abiding memories is as we dropped into Waterloo, I could hear Big Ben chiming 9 O clock. Having got relief, we went to the pub.

[@davidhaxell4161]

Great memory thanks for sharing, out of curiosity are you a bus driver now?

[@roderickmoore3113]

@@davidhaxell4161 Well David I am now 75 so do more gardening than anything else. I started on the railway at Guildford loco in July 1960 as an engine cleaner, and retired as a manager of drivers in 2006. I have been a life member of the Keighley & Worth Valley since 1970, & pre covid journeyed up there from Hampshire and now the Isle of Wight up to half a dozen times a year. i was fortunate in not only for my time on the steam, I also drove the prewar electric emu's, the 1950's &60's replacements, and finally the new stock at the turn of the century. During my fives years as driver at Waterloo between 68 & 73 also drove on the Waterloo & City as we had some rostered turn in my link. It had two nicknames either the Rat Hole or the Gunge.

[@davidhaxell4161]

@@roderickmoore3113 Do you remember a chap called Jake? He used to work Cranleigh line aswell, worked on the railway for some years, now a bus driver.

[@lunacougar]

There was a couple of pictures in the Ian Allen railway annual about 1966 /67 featuring that trip taken near Baynards as I remember. Also there was a VHS video shot on the last regular day of service that has disappeared on line now, anyone know if it's somewhere?

[@AtheistOrphan]

@@lunacougar- VHS Video in 1965? Incidentally my late father was a lifelong railwayman (retired 1989) and I remember him bringing home dahlias from Geoff Birdfield of Baynards when I was a nipper.

[@angelsone-five7912]

Nice little video. I have seen Baynards station and it has been restored to a very high standard and I would love to be the one living there. Damn these people who deny access to certain parts of the line. Christs Hospital as was is mind boggling today.

[@birchwoodracing]

brilliant video, in the last year the council have opened up the section betweem baystone bridge and Christs Hospital station which cuts off the on road section.

[@passiveaggressive6175]

Does that include Southwater?

[@AtheistOrphan]

@@passiveaggressive6175- As far as I’m aware the section between Christ’s Hospital/Southwater has always been walkable. I used to do it a lot in the eighties.

[@thebrummierailenthusiasts5329]

Can you believe it’s 57 years since the line through here was closed

[@christopherbentley5216]

I remember it open,with trains there,( seeing them from the level crossing)

[@davidbarlow350]

A bit of narrative would have been welcome,apart from that an interesting video. Like Wisbech to March line the basic infrastructure seems to be there.It is criminal that £55 billion can be wasted on ONE railway that will,supposedly,cater for a few shiny assed fat cats,when thousands could benefit by the re-introduction of these regional lines,especially the east/west links.

[@davidbarlow350]

If railways didn't make money the French,Germans,Spanish and companies like Virgin and Arriva and Stagecoach wouldn't have their noses in the trough.The railways actually cost us more in subsidies to privatised companies than when it was nationlised!The whole rotten system should be overhauled,de-fragmented and run as one company.The best performing franchise in the past few years had been operating on the East Coast mainline.Funnily enough,that all stopped after the government ceased running it and Virgin took it over!

[@RabbitofPeace]

loved your channel and already sub. Meet the RABBIT OF PEACE . Much success and happiness..

[@peterbuckley265]

IT WAS SO CLEARLY CRIMINAL CLOSING SUCH A USEFULL RAIL ROUTE, LIKE SO MANY OTHER LINES THAT BEECHING SHOULD HAVE GONE TO COURT FOR STEALING OFF THE PUBLIC.

[@Khayyam-vg9fw]

And his boss Marples.

[@Khayyam-vg9fw]

​@Alexander Challis Just no. You're clearly a pro-car, anti-rail fanatic (with a deranged, ultra-Thatcherite economic philosophy). You cherry-pick your data and present it without offering context or acknowledging the existence of alternative viewpoints. Imagine the damage that would have been done to our real infrastructure if Beeching-style cuts had been inflicted before either of the two World Wars! Or perhaps you think wars like that could be won with private cars.

[@LordTantrums007]

Beeching was a typical pen pushing number crunching anti railway pro car at any cost narrow minded servant to the Tories who did so much damage to the national railway network. The Beeching cuts went way too far and in many cases illogical. Britain is now paying a very heavy price for the Beeching cuts.

[@ZathGB]

Just begging to be reinstated !

[@alanpowell9845]

yes this is the bridge on bridge

[@simonwhiting4571]

This looks like a great cycle or walk........where can I access this route?? Many thanks.

[@TerryLHampton]

Simon Whiting You can start up at St Martha’s Church near Guildford and follow signs for the Down’s Link, you will eventually reach Shoreham on the coast. I used to live in Southwater nr Horsham which sits on the route just past Christ’s Hospital which is this videos final destination (the full Down’s Link uses 2 old railway lines.

[@simonwhiting4571]

@@TerryLHampton many thanks for the info😊

[@oldelephantstew]

just biked this line today - the redundant platforms at Christ's Hospital have been cleared of vegetation and it looks like the site is to be redeveloped - Housing? I did not need to retrace my steps to the bridge as I found a path from the redundant platforms through the woods and under the railway to Christ's Hospital station entrance on the South side of the Mid Sussex main line.

[@HarryMarriott]

They have. About to release a video on that.

[@Khayyam-vg9fw]

@David Crouch I wish they would. It should never have been closed.

[@angloaust1575]

Oh well makes a suitable foot and cycle link Also christs hospital to shoreham Another one Sad they didnt do the sheffield.park to lewes as one!

[@stationhouse5866]

👍👍👍😊

[@ianhosier4042]

Another tragedy of the Beeching axe. Guess you have to be a car driver or spend ages on a bus getting between these towns now

[@AtheistOrphan]

The Horsham - Guildford bus pretty much follows the same route.