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University welcomes upgrade of Brighton to Lewes train line
The platforms at Falmer station are to be lengthened, Network Rail has announced.
Falmer railway station is located right next to BHAFC's football stadium.
The University of Sussex has welcomed news of a major overhaul of train links to Falmer station.
Network Rail, which maintains and develops Britain’s railway network, has announced today (Tuesday 16 July) that it is to invest more than £2million upgrading the Brighton to Lewes line and lengthening platforms at Falmer station.
The improvements are intended to reduce queues and congestion before and after football matches at the Amex community stadium, the home of Brighton and Hove Albion FC.
The current signalling system, which is 30 years old, can handle only one train every nine minutes. The changes will make it possible for more trains to use the line at any one time and will mean that passengers can get on or off all of a train’s eight carriages (rather than the current maximum of seven).
The University’s Transport Manager, Chris Wadey, said: “At meetings of the train operators, the football club and both universities, we have voiced our support of Falmer station’s expansion because, in the long term, these improvements will benefit our students and staff.
“Demand for train travel to campus has increased over the past few years, as the numbers of students and staff at Sussex has steadily increased. And we expect those numbers to continue to grow over the next few years.
“We will now start discussions with Southern railways to bring about improvements to the service during campus operational periods.
“Eventually the improved signalling should result in trains travelling at a much greater frequency during the week (and not just on football match days), which will hopefully encourage more of our students and staff to use public transport.”
Simon Chapman, Network Rail’s route enhancement manager for Sussex, said: “The current signalling in the area dates back to the 1980s and the investment will improve the infrastructure to help meet the needs of a growing and increasingly in-demand railway.”
Work to lengthen the platforms is due to be completed by December 2013, while re-signalling work is due to be completed by spring 2014.
A Southern railway spokesman said: “We are already working on plans on how we can best deliver these benefits, ready for when the project completes next year.”