Phase One

The Stoneybridge Railway Redevelopment Scheme (Phase One) started November 10th 1999 and is due for completion in mid 2002. It began with the closure of the original Stoneybridge station on November 12th 1999, the last passenger service (See Image 01) Worked from Castle Hill, stopped at Stoneybridge Station to collect its last passengers. The stationmaster ceremoniously turned off the station lights for the last time, removed his cap and waved the train on. The Ex-BR Class 25 Diesel (25326) hauled the train to the new Stoneybridge West station pulling in to the down goods yard exchange siding where the dozen or so passengers disembarked for the last time.. The layout was then chopped in half! producing two smaller layouts, one fixed and one portable.

My `Home' layout consisting of Stoneybridge (The original Station built 1997, & extended in 1998) and Stoneybridge West (The new station built 1999) is being `Split' into two layouts. I know this sounds painfull and I can't lie, It does hurt tearing up stuff that has taken some time to create, but with a view to the future and the possibility of part of my `Layout that never leaves home' evolving into something I can maybe exhibit one day, I ran the last passenger service and cleared all stock from the Stoneybridge West sections of the layout using the old Stoneybridge Station to stable the stock & locomotives. I then promptly hacksawed through the two double track mainline bridges that connect the two parts of the layout, releasing the second (East end) baseboard of Stoneybridge West station and making Stoneybridge into a seperate Home layout for locomotive testing & signalling developments. The home layout has since been scrapped to provide more space for machinery and other engineering projects. Stoneybridge West will be developed into a fully portable exhibition layout

I will be heavily redeveloping the Stoneybridge West baseboards, and plan to build a new baseboard to extend another 3ft from the east end of the station (where the two bridges to Stoneybridge used to be attached!) I hope to make Stoneybridge West into a layout that may be exhibited next year (2002), which will help me practice my modelling skills before tackling the `Historically Correct, Hamworthy Junctio`N' layout which is planned for completion in Mid 2005.

You can see the expansion plans and current development of Stoneybridge West on the Phase 2 page.

End of the line! The bridge will be removed and will either become part of a small diorama for displaying locos & stock `Off-Layout' or may be pressed into service as a `scenic-break' overbridge on another layout.