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50th Anniversary Appeal - Funding for the Finish As part of our 50th Anniversary Appeal we are going to connect our pioneer steam heritage railway with the national network via our own platform at East Grinstead station. By the end of December 2011 we had undertaken 5 phases of digging, removing over 90,000 tonnes of waste blocking the extension at Imberhorne cutting. Most of the waste has been taken out by train. Thanks to the generous support we've received over the last year we've beaten the 1st April 2012 Landfill Tax deadline! But we need your help to finish the job  From March 2012 we enter the final phase of the project. We urgently need to raise the final £600,000 to enable us to reopen the line by Easter 2013. Please donate now to help us finish the project. Work on the ground recommenced in earnest in the last week of March, at Kingscote and Imberhorne Road Bridge. Both track and signalling at Kingscote require major changes. Our proximity to the electrified line at East Grinstead introduces some new features, including AC track circuits and immunisation, adding complexity and cost to the signalling work between the two stations. At Imberhorne cutting itself we need to deal with the large volume of capping material remaining. This will firstly involve re-engineering the cutting and re-profiling the track bed south of the road bridge. Once this is done, service and drainage ducts can be installed followed by the track itself, which should be in place by the end of the summer. Once track is in place, the remaining capping material can be moved south to Horsted Keynes for construction of a turning facility. This is likely to involve the use of a hired-in train similar to the one used for waste removal to undertake the work quickly and efficiently. Before we finally open, a number of other tasks need to be done, including repairs to a bridge and the underside of the southern arch of the viaduct. We need to construct customer facilities at the station site and an inter-station walkway. Then there is a lot of work to be done on safety, operational planning and staff training. We plan to complete all the work by 18 March 2013. However, this date is only achievable if the last remaining funding is available on the same timescale. The total estimated cost of the works is £800,000, comprising an average spend of approximately £80,000 per month over the remainder of 2012. We have planned the work in the expectation that our supporters will make a final effort for one last "big give" to see the Railway's most significant long-term objective come to fruition. Despite the current financial woes of the world, connecting this best-loved steam railway with Britain’s national railway network is a true good-news story with benefits across the whole community. This was shown with the massive kick-start to the Funding for the Finish campaign, with the first £200,000 raised during the "Double Donations Dash". This was a magnificent achievement by our members and members of the public, but if we are to finish the extension we cannot let up on the fund-raising, so please do donate now if you are able to. The benefits of this connection to the whole South East are massive:
For 50 years the Bluebell Railway has been serving the community. The Appeal Patron is The Rt. Hon. the Viscount Thurso, MP View the full list of Vice-Patrons |
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Contact us - Telephone: UK:- 01825 720800, USA:- 011 44 - 1825 720800, Email 50appeal @ bluebell-railway.co.uk
© Bluebell Railway, March 2012 The Bluebell Railway Trust is a Registered Charity, No. 292497