Editing Lavender Line (section)

== Closure ==

As early as 1964 BR was aware of planned road works in and around the Lewes area, in which a bypass around Lewes was planned. As part of this the building of the Phoenix Causeway (Phase 1 of 3) meant a section of the Lewes to Uckfield railway line was in the way – requiring either a level crossing or a road bridge. BR applied for an Act of Parliament<ref>British Railways Act 1966 p4</ref> to reinstate the Hamsey loop as there were also concerns about the condition of some of the bridges on the 1878 route. Despite this, in 1966, the local Transport Users' Consultative Committee received notification from BR that the line from Lewes to Hurst Green Junction was to close in its entirety. This was because the line was one of those proposed for closure as unremunerative in the first Beeching report published in 1963.

Opposition from the many railway travellers resulted. Their case used a motorway costing formula to show that the users would waste some {{Currency|750,000|gbp}} in excess travel compared to BR's calculated loss of only {{Currency|260,000|gbp|linked=}}. In the end the TUCC upheld the users' complaints and the line did not close. In early 1968 BR made another attempt to close the line. This time the Transport Minister, [[Barbara Castle]], requested more information from BR, which was furnished to her successor, [[Richard Marsh, Baron Marsh|Richard Marsh]], who took over as Transport Minister in April 1968.

From the information requested by his predecessor, and of all the scenarios that were examined by the Minister, he agreed in August 1968 to the closure of the Lewes to Uckfield section of line. Considerable opposition from the users centred, in the first instance, around the inadequate replacement bus service – which had Ministerial approval. The issue was resolved by the Transport Commissioners who, on examination of all the complaints from the users and undertaking the journey themselves, upheld the users' complaints. Structural problems with the bridge over Cliffe High Street in Lewes were identified, which necessitated [[single-line working]] and from January 1969 a revised timetable with trains connecting at Barcombe Mills in place. However concerns over the state of the bridge over Cliffe High Street remained and finally the BR Chief Civil Engineer declared the bridge unsafe. The last train at Isfield was on 24 February 1969 but a rail replacement bus service operated until 6 May, with the station closing on that date, the tickets latterly being sold from the signal box.

The remaining section of the line, from Uckfield to Hurst Green Junction had been refused closure by the Minister as there was a social need for the line and, in accordance with Section 39 of the Transport Act 1968, a subsidy could be paid with Treasury approval for a three-year period.<ref>Railway Magazine March 1969 p171-172</ref>

The route between Lewes and Uckfield has been protected from development in various local and structure plans since the mid-1970s.  This attempts to ensure that nothing further is built which could prevent the line from re-opening. This planning policy protection still remained in force in 2008.<ref>Lewes - Uckfield Railway Line Reinstatement Study section 1.1.3</ref> Sale of the track bed and stations was postponed for some 15 years by a number of unsuccessful attempts to re-open the closed section of line.  A short length of track used as a headshunt remained south of Uckfield. This extended to a bridge over the river Uck (approximately {{convert|1/4|mile}} north of the present Worth Halt) until the Uckfield bypass (opened 1985) severed the trackbed.  Further truncation occurred when [[Uckfield railway station|Uckfield station]] was moved north of the high street in 1991.