Waiting at Cranbrook Road Level Crossing

Image: © Marathon Taken: 15 Aug 2015

The original line was opened by the Rother Valley Railway between Rolvenden and Robertsbridge in 1900. At that time Rolvenden station was named Tenterden until the station up the hill was opened. The railway extended to Tenterden Town in 1903 and on to Headcorn in 1905, naming itself the Kent & East Sussex Railway in the process. The section from Tenterden Town to Headcorn closed in 1954 and Tenterden itself closed with the line in 1961. Tenterdown Town station was reopened by the Kent & East Sussex Railway on 3rd February 1974 but the line only went as far as Rolvenden. The extension to Wittersham Road came in 1977, to Northiam in 1990 and to Bodiam in 2000. This view is of the level crossing where Cranbrook Road crosses the line. Tenterden Town is up the line to the left and Rolvenden is down the line to the right. It is a steep gradient from Rolvenden up to Tenterden. Visiting former London Transport engine L92 can be seen pulling the last train of the day back to Tenterden Town. The engine is normally based at the South Devon Railway - see http://www.southdevonrailway.co.uk/locomotives/5786 More information about the Kent & East Sussex Railway can be found at http://www.kesr.org.uk/

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