Hassocks railway station
Encyclopedia
Hassocks railway station serves Hassocks
in West Sussex
. It is on the Brighton Main Line
and Thameslink
12 km (7¼ miles) north of Brighton railway station
, and train services are provided by Southern
and First Capital Connect
.
, which became the London Brighton and South Coast Railway in 1846. It was one of the few intermediate stations on the line with four tracks, to allow express trains to overtake those stopping at the station. However, the number of tracks was later reduced to two, although the additional width is still apparent from the siting of the station buildings.
The original 1841 station building was designed by David Mocatta
, the architect of the railway, in a simple cottage style, but using the same modular system that he applied to other stations on the line.
For many years Hassocks Gate station was used by excursion trains for passengers visiting the nearby South Downs
and suffered as a result as it became a meeting place for prostitutes. It stands almost at the summit of the line's climb from London before passing through Clayton Tunnel
, a short distance south of the station. This was the site of the Clayton Tunnel rail crash
in 1861, resulting in 23 deaths and 176 injuries.
Between December 1880 and August 1881 a new station building was constructed by James Longley & Co of Crawley
. It was built in the same style as stations on the Bluebell
and Cuckoo
lines with a half-timbered upper storey, decorative brick eaves, stained glass windows and charming porches. The booking office was covered by a lantern-shaped roof and the platforms by wooden canopies on iron columns. The station was demolished in 1973 by British Rail
and replaced with a CLASP
structure which has been described as "truly awful".
In 2006 the local community announced that it was hoping to raise £2.5m to rebuild the station to the previous design.
These plans seem to have fallen through as in 2008 Network Rail
announced that it would be carrying out an 18 month feasibility study to identify possible improvements to the existing building in order to facilitate access by the disabled and elderly. Recent changes (2011) to the station have seen the addition of ticket gate lines on both platforms and some refurbishment of the shelters. In January 2011 it was announced by Newtwork Rail that "£1.25 million will be used to rebuild the station under the Department for Transport’s National Station Improvement Programme and that a further £1.6 million, from the Access for All scheme, will be used to install step-free access."
Hassocks
Hassocks is a large village and civil parish in the Mid Sussex district of West Sussex, England. Its name is believed to derive from the tufts of grass found in the surrounding fields....
in West Sussex
West Sussex
West Sussex is a county in the south of England, bordering onto East Sussex , Hampshire and Surrey. The county of Sussex has been divided into East and West since the 12th century, and obtained separate county councils in 1888, but it remained a single ceremonial county until 1974 and the coming...
. It is on the Brighton Main Line
Brighton Main Line
The Brighton Main Line is a British railway line from London Victoria and London Bridge to Brighton. It is about 50 miles long, and is electrified throughout. Trains are operated by Southern, First Capital Connect, and Gatwick Express, now part of Southern.-Original proposals:There were no fewer...
and Thameslink
Thameslink
Thameslink is a fifty-station main-line route in the British railway system running north to south through London from Bedford to Brighton, serving both London Gatwick Airport and London Luton Airport. It opened as a through service in 1988 and by 1998 was severely overcrowded, carrying more than...
12 km (7¼ miles) north of Brighton railway station
Brighton railway station
Brighton railway station is the principal railway station in the city of Brighton and Hove, on the south coast of England. The station master is Mark Epsom...
, and train services are provided by Southern
Southern (train operating company)
Southern is a train operating company in the United Kingdom. Officially named Southern Railway Ltd., it is a subsidiary of Govia, a joint venture between transport groups Go-Ahead Group and Keolis, and has operated the South Central rail franchise since October 2000 and the Gatwick Express service...
and First Capital Connect
First Capital Connect
First Capital Connect is a passenger train operating company in England that began operations on the National Rail network on 1 April 2006...
.
History
The station was named "Hassocks Gate" upon its opening on 21 September 1841 by the London and Brighton RailwayLondon and Brighton Railway
The London and Brighton Railway was a railway company in England which was incorporated in 1837 and survived until 1846. Its railway runs from a junction with the London & Croydon Railway at Norwood - which gives it access from London Bridge, just south of the River Thames in central London...
, which became the London Brighton and South Coast Railway in 1846. It was one of the few intermediate stations on the line with four tracks, to allow express trains to overtake those stopping at the station. However, the number of tracks was later reduced to two, although the additional width is still apparent from the siting of the station buildings.
The original 1841 station building was designed by David Mocatta
David Mocatta
David Mocatta was a British architect and a member of the Anglo-Jewish Mocatta family.-Biography:Mocatta studied in London from 1821 to 1827 under Sir John Soane and travelled in Italy...
, the architect of the railway, in a simple cottage style, but using the same modular system that he applied to other stations on the line.
For many years Hassocks Gate station was used by excursion trains for passengers visiting the nearby South Downs
South Downs
The South Downs is a range of chalk hills that extends for about across the south-eastern coastal counties of England from the Itchen Valley of Hampshire in the west to Beachy Head, near Eastbourne, East Sussex, in the east. It is bounded on its northern side by a steep escarpment, from whose...
and suffered as a result as it became a meeting place for prostitutes. It stands almost at the summit of the line's climb from London before passing through Clayton Tunnel
Clayton Tunnel
Clayton Tunnel is a railway tunnel located near the village of Clayton, West Sussex between Hassocks and Preston Park railway stations on the Brighton Main Line...
, a short distance south of the station. This was the site of the Clayton Tunnel rail crash
Clayton Tunnel rail crash
The Clayton Tunnel rail crash, which took place on Sunday 25 August 1861, five miles from Brighton on the south coast of England, was the worst accident of the British railway system to that time...
in 1861, resulting in 23 deaths and 176 injuries.
Between December 1880 and August 1881 a new station building was constructed by James Longley & Co of Crawley
Crawley
Crawley is a town and local government district with Borough status in West Sussex, England. It is south of Charing Cross, north of Brighton and Hove, and northeast of the county town of Chichester, covers an area of and had a population of 99,744 at the time of the 2001 Census.The area has...
. It was built in the same style as stations on the Bluebell
Bluebell Railway
The Bluebell Railway is a heritage line running for nine miles along the border between East and West Sussex, England. Steam trains are operated between and , with an intermediate station at .The railway is managed and run largely by volunteers...
and Cuckoo
Cuckoo Line
The Cuckoo Line is an informal name for the now defunct railway service which linked Polegate and Eridge in East Sussex, England, from 1880 to 1968. It was nicknamed the Cuckoo Line by drivers, from a tradition observed at the annual fair at Heathfield, a station on the route...
lines with a half-timbered upper storey, decorative brick eaves, stained glass windows and charming porches. The booking office was covered by a lantern-shaped roof and the platforms by wooden canopies on iron columns. The station was demolished in 1973 by British Rail
Southern Region of British Railways
The Southern Region was a region of British Railways from 1948. The region ceased to be an operating unit in its own right in the 1980s and was wound up at the end of 1992. The region covered south London, southern England and the south coast, including the busy commuter belt areas of Kent, Sussex...
and replaced with a CLASP
Consortium of Local Authorities Special Programme
The Consortium of Local Authorities Special Programme , was formed in England in 1957 to combine the resources of Local Authorities with the purpose of developing a prefabricated school building programme...
structure which has been described as "truly awful".
In 2006 the local community announced that it was hoping to raise £2.5m to rebuild the station to the previous design.
These plans seem to have fallen through as in 2008 Network Rail
Network Rail
Network Rail is the government-created owner and operator of most of the rail infrastructure in Great Britain .; it is not responsible for railway infrastructure in Northern Ireland...
announced that it would be carrying out an 18 month feasibility study to identify possible improvements to the existing building in order to facilitate access by the disabled and elderly. Recent changes (2011) to the station have seen the addition of ticket gate lines on both platforms and some refurbishment of the shelters. In January 2011 it was announced by Newtwork Rail that "£1.25 million will be used to rebuild the station under the Department for Transport’s National Station Improvement Programme and that a further £1.6 million, from the Access for All scheme, will be used to install step-free access."
Service
The typical service from the station is:- 3tph to BrightonBrighton railway stationBrighton railway station is the principal railway station in the city of Brighton and Hove, on the south coast of England. The station master is Mark Epsom...
- 2tph to Bedford via London BridgeLondon Bridge stationLondon Bridge railway station is a central London railway terminus and London Underground complex in the London Borough of Southwark, occupying a large area on two levels immediately south-east of London Bridge and 1.6 miles east of Charing Cross. It is one of the oldest railway stations in the...
and St Pancras InternationalSt Pancras railway stationSt Pancras railway station, also known as London St Pancras and since 2007 as St Pancras International, is a central London railway terminus celebrated for its Victorian architecture. The Grade I listed building stands on Euston Road in St Pancras, London Borough of Camden, between the... - 1tph to London Victoria via East CroydonEast Croydon stationEast Croydon station is a railway station and tram stop in Croydon, 10.35 miles south of London Bridge in Travelcard Zone 5. It is the largest and busiest station in Croydon and the busiest in London outside Travelcard Zone 1 in terms of the number of passengers entering and exiting...
and Clapham JunctionClapham Junction railway stationClapham Junction railway station is near St John's Hill in the south-west of Battersea in the London Borough of Wandsworth. Although it is in Battersea, the area around the station is commonly identified as Clapham Junction....