Horsham branch line from Three Bridges The successful opening and operation of the
Liverpool and Manchester Railway inspired promoters in other parts of the country to consider what lines might be built. A railway from London to Brighton was considered to be an early possibility, but the topography of the
North Downs and the
South Downs made the selection of a route contentious. The
London and Brighton Railway eventually was authorised to make a direct line through Three Bridges, and it opened in 1841. Its trains used the
London and Croydon Railway at the north end of the route. One of the routes that had been put forward would have run by way of Horsham, which was an important market town. Horsham was disappointed to have been left off the emerging railway network, and the London and Brighton Railway designed a route connecting Three Bridges to Horsham, a distance of about miles. This was authorised on 21 July 1845. The continued the construction of the Horsham branch, and it opened to traffic on 14 February 1848.
On from Horsham to Petworth There was a large area between the Brighton main line and the
Portsmouth Direct line unoccupied by any railway, in the middle of the nineteenth century. The area was agricultural with no large towns in it, but nevertheless it was desired to occupy it with a railway. A local concern, the Mid-Sussex Railway was projected: it would build a line on from Horsham to
Billingshurst,
Pulborough and Petworth. The Mid-Sussex Railway Company received its authorising act of Parliament, the '''''' (
20 & 21 Vict. c. cxxxiii) on 10 August 1857. The line was to be single track, and miles long; it was originally proposed by the Mid-Sussex company that Petworth should be reached by a more direct route rather than through Pulborough, but Pulborough was considered too important to leave off the line of route. By aligning the route to the south to reach Pulborough, the onward course to Petworth was kept south of the River Rother, to minimise cost of river crossings. The Petworth terminus was some way from the town, at a location known as
Coultershaw Mill. Horsham station had been built as a terminus from Three Bridges and was not suitable for simply being altered to a through station, and a new station had to be built. A separate company, the
Mid-Sussex and Midhurst Railway, received authority to continue the line to Midhurst under the
Mid Sussex and Midhurst Junction Railway Act 1859 (
22 & 23 Vict. c. cxxv) of 13 August 1859. It was originally the intention of the Mid-Sussex and Midhurst Railway to seek to extend its line to Petersfield, but the would not support such an extension, as being contrary to a territorial exclusivity agreement with the .
Branch to Shoreham and Brighton In 1861 a branch line from Itchingfield Junction, south of Horsham, to Shoreham was opened; it largely followed the valley of the River Adur. At the time Shoreham was considered an important harbour for cross-Channel cargo, and the connection to Brighton was a useful cross-country connection.
Continuing to the coast At this stage the decided to double the track on the
River Arun bridge at
Ford (at the time called Arundel station), as this was the only remaining single track section on the coast line from Brighton to Portsmouth. As part of the work they hoped to reduce the span to save cost. At first this was objected to by the River Arun Navigation Commissioners, but they relented on condition that the build a railway from Littlehampton, where there were to be quayside sidings, to Pulborough. So far as the commissioners were concerned this was a considerable improvement to be paid for by the railway. The were not displeased to be obliged to make this railway, as they had already been thinking of doing so and had expected opposition. The work was authorised by the
London, Brighton and South Coast Railway Act 1860 (
23 & 24 Vict. c. clxxi) on 23 July 1860; the new line would be about ten miles long from Hardham Junction just south of Pulborough to the Ford station, and it would save ten miles on the journey from London to Chichester and Portsmouth. The new line was described as the Mid-Sussex Junction Railway. A branch line from Ford to Littlehampton was also authorised under the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway Act 1860. As part of the work, the original Mid-Sussex Railway section from Horsham to Hardham Junction was doubled. The miles of new line from Hardham Junction to Arundel Junction was opened on 3 August 1863. At first this was limited to three trains a day between Ford and Pulborough, due to the reservations of the
Board of Trade inspecting officer,
Col. Yolland, about the security of the track. where the trains made connection with the Petworth to London trains.
Littlehampton The Littlehampton branch of 1 mile 57 chains was authorised as part of the
London, Brighton and South Coast Railway Act 1860 (
23 & 24 Vict. c. clxxi); it was part of the River Arun Commissioners’ requirement. It was simple enough to construct, and it joined the West Coast line at Ford; the junction was named Arundel Junction, and was the point of convergence for the Pulborough line as well as the Littlehampton branch. Soon after it was renamed Ford Junction. The Littlehampton branch opened on 17 August 1863. Both lines faced Portsmouth, so that direct through running from Littlehampton to Arundel was not possible, even though that must have been the commissioners’ expectation. A spur was authorised by the
London, Brighton and South Coast Railway (Additional Powers) Act 1864 (
27 & 28 Vict. c. cccxiv) of 29 July 1864; this would run directly from the Littlehampton line towards Pulborough, but it was not constructed and the powers were allowed to lapse.
Horsham and Guildford Direct Railway In 1865 the Horsham and Guildford Direct Railway was opened. It ran from Stammerham Junction south of Horsham to Shalford Junction, south of Guildford. The junction at Stammerham was arranged to permit through running from Shoreham to Guilford, and the promoters had conceived that heavy through goods traffic from the Midlands to Brighton would result. The were in possession of the railways at Guildford, although the
South Eastern Railway (SER) had a line there from Reading. From the point of view, the objective appeared obvious: the
Great Western Railway, the and the would collude in developing a network in Hampshire and West Sussex that would abstract business, and the latter did all in its power to obstruct the through traffic. It was largely successful: the traffic never developed and the southern spur at Stammerham was removed; the Horsham to Guildford line remained a simple rural branch line. The were antagonistic to the Horsham line, which they feared would attract incursion by the Great Western Railway over the line.
Leatherhead to Horsham Horsham was connected to the railway network by way of Three Bridges, on the Brighton main line, but the junction there did not permit through running, so that Horsham trains required to backshunt to reach Horsham. A more direct route from London to Horsham was under consideration, running from Leatherhead through
Dorking. The intervening terrain was not densely occupied, the only significant town being Dorking itself, already served by an east–west line operated by the
South Eastern Railway. The decided to build the line from Leatherhead to Dorking, and got powers to do so by the
London, Brighton and South Coast Railway (Dorking to Leatherhead) Act 1863 (
26 & 27 Vict. c. cxxxvii) of 13 July 1863. The line from Leatherhead to Dorking was opened on 11 March 1867. The company was to have five years to build these two railways with a £50 per day penalty for non completion. Once again there were delays, and it was not until 28 September 1885 that the realignment of the West Coast line was brought into use. Although the original route there was abandoned, the telegraph lines remained in place for several years. The commissioning of the south-to-east curve took place on 1 January 1887.
Electrification on to Arundel Junction The electrification of the Mid-Sussex line and associated connections was the second scheme to be financed under the 1935 arrangement with the Treasury. It was known as the Portsmouth No. 2 Scheme, as it followed the No. 1 scheme, which was on the Portsmouth Direct Line and associated routes. The No. 2 scheme comprised the route from Dorking to Horsham and onwards through
Arundel to the coastal junction at Ford, and the connecting line from Three Bridges to Horsham, as well as the coastal route from West Worthing to
Havant and the Littlehampton and
Bognor Regis branches. The newly converted lines made end-on connections with existing electrified routes at Dorking (1925 suburban extension), Three Bridges and West Worthing (1932/33 Brighton scheme) and Havant (1937 Portsmouth No. 1 scheme). The cost of the work was estimated to be £2.75 million, to electrify 75 route miles, 165 single track miles. The scheme was authorised by the board in July 1936, and work started in mid-1937, as soon as the teams responsible were available following the completion of the Direct Line electrification. The rolling stock was the responsibility of
Oliver Bulleid. The Pullman car services provided in steam trains to Bognor Regis were discontinued, and catering in new buffet cars provided was in the hands of the
Pullman Car Company. The branch was completely closed on 20 May 1966. ==Current operations==