Greatstone-on-Sea Halt railway station

Infobox UK disused station
name = Greatstone-on-Sea Halt


gridref = TR077225
owner = Southern Railway
Southern Region of British Railways
locale = Greatstone-on-Sea
borough = Shepway, Kent
platforms = 1
years = 4 July 1937
events = Opened (Greatstone-on-Sea)
years1 = 14 June 1954
events1 = Renamed (Greatstone-on-Sea Halt)
years2 = 6 March 1967
events2 = Closed [Butt, R.V.J. (1995). "The Directory of Railway Stations", Patrick Stephens Ltd, Sparkford, ISBN 1-85260-508-1, p. 109.]

Greatstone-on-Sea Halt was a railway station which served the modern village of Greatstone-on-Sea in Kent, England. The station opened in 1937 and closed in 1967.

History

The station came about in 1937 when, in response to holiday camp development in the area, the Southern Railway decided to realign its branch line to New Romney (which had been opened in 1884) closer to the sea and to open two intermediate stations - Lydd-on-Sea and Greatstone-on-Sea. Greatstone was convenient for Greatstone Camp and Maddieson's Holiday Camp and competed with services provided by the Romney, Hythe and Dymchurch Railway (RHDR) which had already been operating in the area for a decade. [cite book | last = Oppitz | first = Leslie | title = Lost Railways of Kent | publisher = Countryside Books | date = 2003 | location = Newbury, Berkshire | pages =p. 80 | isbn = 978-1853068034 ] The station was equipped with basic facilities consisting of a long single platform on the up side with a simple shelter. [cite book | last = Harding | first = Peter | title = The New Romney Branch Line | publisher = Peter A. Harding | date = 1983 | location = Woking, Surrey | pages =p. 14 | isbn = 0952345889 ] An extensive concrete forecourt was, however, provided for the coaches which were expected to ferry in crowds of holidaymakers. [http://www.subbrit.org.uk/sb-sites/stations/g/greatstone_on_sea_halt/index.shtml Subterranea Britannica, "Greatstone-on-Sea Halt".] ]

The failure of Greatstone to develop into a substantial holiday resort, coupled with the inconvenient siting of the station by comparison with the RHDR's Greatstone Dunes and Romney Sands stations, led to it being downgraded to an unstaffed halt in 1954. As passenger traffic continued to dwindle and freight became insignificant, the New Romney branch fell into decline and was listed for closure in the Beeching Report. In 1966 the Minister of Transport Barbara Castle announced her intention of closing the Appledore to New Romney Branch and passenger services ceased on 6 March 1967. [Oppitz, L., op. cit. p. 82.]

Present day

Although the trackbed from Romney Junction towards New Romney is easily traceable, little remains of Greatstone-on-Sea Halt today except for the concrete forecourt which is used for parking and a slightly raised area of ground where the platform once lay. The platform was demolished in the 1980s and an access road to a school car park crosses the platform area.

References