The Kent and East Sussex Railway and Rother Valley Railway Heritage Trust invited RailAdvent down to Robertsbridge today to see the official opening of Robertsbridge station.

Lord Peter Hendy of Richmond Hill was among the guests of honour, visiting alongside John Smith from GB Railfreight and John White from Hastings Diesels and St Leonards Engineering.

Before the event started, Hastings Diesel 1001 operated a private charter between Robertsbridge and Tonbridge before coming back later for the event for the VIPs.

Donors were thanked for their contributions and that it wouldn’t have been possible without them.

The Chairman of Rother District Council said that they have been and are still very much in support of the extension to connect Tenterden with the mainline at Rotherbridge.

This is another milestone in the project, with Phase 1 now complete. Funding has now turned to the Locomotive Shed that will be built at Robertsbridge to allow trains to start at either end of the line.

This is phase 2 of the project and around £600,000 worth of funding is needed for this. Over a quarter of the cost has been raised but work is still to be done.

Huw Merriman, who was previously the rail minister, joined Lord Hendy to officially open the station building. Mr Merriman thanked Lord Hendy for his work on the project, as some of it wouldnt have been possible without his efforts.

Mr Merriman said that to get the link joined up would require decisions to be made with efficiency.

After the station building was officially opened, the Hastings Diesel then had the honour of officially opening the mainline connection at Robertsbridge, becoming the first full train to use the connection.

70000 Britannia had already used the connection; however, the headshunt at the Network Rail connection has now been extended to allow longer trains to use it.

With all the formalities completed, the Hastings unit hauled the invited guests on two round trips to Northbridge Street crossing, the current terminus of the Rother Valley Railway.

The work is on track to have steam trains running from Tenterden to Robertsbridge by Easter 2028, so any funding the public can help with will make a big difference in getting to this milestone.

We were invited onboard and this was a real treat for us, having never been on or seen the Hastings unit before today.

Interested in a ride on the Hastings unit? The Rother Valley Railway is holding an open day tomorrow, 18th April, between 10:30 am and 3:30 pm at Robertsbridge Junction station.

Visitors will be able to have a train ride and see the progress that the railway has made, including seeing the new turntable and the newly opened station building.

A big thank you to the Rother Valley Railway Trust and the Kent and East Sussex Railway for inviting RailAdvent to their big day. A reminder that RailAdvent Plus Gold members can get a discount at the Kent and East Sussex Railway. Click here for more information.