Above About Your Station
The station building at Rye is a splendid edifice on the Platform 2 (for Hastings etc) side of the tracks. To the right of the main building is a caff ...
... which has changed hands since the picture was taken. As well as the usual additions to a cup if coffee ...
... i.e. lots of gorgeous cakes ...
... the business also doubles as a florist ...
... with lots of gorgeous blooms!
As you approach the station via Station Approach, you will observe the town's main bus stops and time point.
Services are in the hands of Stagecoach ...
... purchaser of the East Kent company whose vehicles we see un years gone by, resting between duties beside the station building ...
... and using the same layby as does Stagecoach today.
Maidstone and District appeared as well.
fbb has failed abysmally to identify those route numbers! Here an M & D Single decker awaits its next departure.
Maidstone and District?
Even stranger in colour! It used to be with the Dengate Bus Company which operated several services un the Hastungs and Rye area ...
... usung an eclectic seleection of vehicles!
Today, through the central portico of Rye station, you enter a neat and tidy ticket office cum waiting area before continuing on to Platform 2 for trains to Hastings etc.
The platforms are staggered ...
... now linked by a footbridge.
Therein lies a tale. The line between Ore and Ashford was listed for closure under the Beeching Report. A combination of ferocious local opposition and relatively poor road links meant that the line survived but was later reduced to single track for part of its length.
With the arrival of the Hastings electrification came the proposal to add conductor rail to the Marshlink line.
So a footbridge was added for safety reasons ...
... which (fbb guesswork!) duly replaced a foot crossing.
The Marshlink line was not electrified!
There is a lengthy walking route from the station building via the car and coach park ...
... over the level crossing ...
... and back to Platform 1.
fbb is sure that the worthy citizens of Rye would demand a foot crossing and later rejoice (?) in the installation of the footbridge.
Platform 1 has just a basic shelter, but a shelter with character.
In the good old bad old days, such a facility would have routinely been demolished and replaced by a 'bus' shelter. So it is to the credit if whoever makes these far reaching management decisions that the characterful shelter has been fully refurbished.
Nice!
Tomorrow, fbb will look at signals and try to answer two cutting edge questions.
Why, in the 21st century and with the benefit if modern electronics, does Rye appear to have a working manual signal box?
And why oh why at Rye (say I), are signals not controlled by the mega and hugely expensive signalling centre at Ashford.
They've got all the clever stuff there!
Well Done Stagecoach
fbb was revising his poor knowledge of current bus services at Rye when he came across this from Stagecoach.
Route 100 runs hourly between Conquest Hospital (Hastings), Rye, Lydd and Romney with a Sunday variant numbered 101.
There is no Saturday service (see timetable heading)!
Really?
The existence of a highlighted 'Saturday only' journey suggests that the table should be headed Monday to Saturday.
Whoops!
Convalescent Cartography
fbb has been spending some time creating a map. It is probably the most challenging design project the old bloke has ever attempted.
More in due course.
It is utterly purposeless but no equivalent exists - anywhere.
Next Rye signals blog : Thursday 25th June
