Sheerness on Sea

[jnjkerbin]

Having wanted to go on an excursion somewhere new, we settled on Sheerness and arrived at Sevenoaks in good time for the 1002 to Blackfriars, formed of 465161 which required no red pen. We left on time and passed through both Bat & Ball and Swanley without any trouble getting on the train (a rarity) but the train began to get busier from St Mary Cray. Due to some engineering works at Bickley we were put over onto the slow lines there, allowing a cross platform change at Bromley South which we arrived at on time. After checking that our train was indeed departing from platform 4 we saw that it was shown on the boards as a 12 coach train. However it arrived with only 8 coaches and we boarded the front 4 coaches formed of 375813 leading 375626, neither of which were winners. The journey to Sittingbourne progressed quickly and the scenery was reasonably pleasant and got much better just before Rochester and we passed over the line to Strood where a 375/3 was waiting to form a Tonbridge via Maidstone service. After Rochester, the train got busier and the Medway towns began to live up to my preconceptions of them! We arrived at Sittingbourne only 2 minutes down and it was across the platform onto 466008, my first winner of the day and indeed my first ride on a 466 which isn’t coupled to another Networker. The line to Sheerness had a certain interest about it, particularly between the isolated station of Swale and Queenborough. The ride over the King’s Ferry lifting bridge offered some good views and we soon arrived into the station of Sheerness which looked like it had seen better days, our 2 coach train dwarfed by the substantial platform. On leaving the station we began to think coming there may have been a mistake but after having got lunch and the latest issue of Rail we sat at the seafront looking across the estuary to Essex. Interestingly, when I searched for the times home on the National Rail Enquiries app, it suggested that my nearest station was Southend! It was then back to the station for another ride on board 466008 again back to Sittingbourne before the same pair of 375s turned up again to haul us back to Bromley. We arrived at Bromley two minutes early at 1418 meaning we could comfortably connect with the 1421 to Orpington. Fortunately, this was a winner in the shape of 465160 which hauled us to Orpington where we had a few minutes before the all stations stopper to Sevenoaks was due to leave which gave us two more new units, 465037 and 465174. We decided to get off at Dunton Green as this station is about the same distance from my house as Sevenoaks.
Despite some grotty bits of the day overall it was worth it and the Sheerness Branch was an interesting line to take.

Rating - 7/10
Total miles 110m 42ch.

 

[user15681]

Brave of you I must admit! Haha, good report though, I like it. When the Sheerness train arrives at Sittingbourne, I always clutch my possessions and hold my nose. Just joking of course, Sheerness just has a reputation and as you say, has seen better days.

 

[jnjkerbin]

Brave of you I must admit! Haha, good report though, I like it. When the Sheerness train arrives at Sittingbourne, I always clutch my possessions and hold my nose. Just joking of course, Sheerness just has a reputation and as you say, has seen better days.

I left out the fact that at Sittingbourne we were treated to the site of a man shouting at his partner, at Sheerness we had some guy shouting at someone who "didn't belong in our ******* country" and at Swale a fare evader got kicked off with the guard requesting that the other train working the branch didn't stop there. And to think that I thought Bat & Ball was bad! (Bat & Ball has a reputation around the Sevenoaks/Tonbridge area for being quite rough)

 

[user15681]

Unfortunately it doesn't surprise me.

 

[telstarbox]

People up north think Kent's posh, they don't know the (east) half of it!

 

[jnjkerbin]

Interestingly, some people think that the word "chav" actually derives from Chatham!

 

[Waddon]

at Swale a fare evader got kicked off with the guard requesting that the other train working the branch didn't stop there.

I laughed at the idea of a fare evader getting kicked off at Swale, that has got to be one of the most remote, desolate stations in the south of England! There's literally nothing there at all except the bridges... he/she must have had a very long miserable walk home, serves them right

 

[user15681]

I laughed at the idea of a fare evader getting kicked off at Swale, that has got to be one of the most remote, desolate stations in the south of England! There's literally nothing there at all except the bridges... he/she must have had a very long miserable walk home, serves them right

It would be a punishment itself being left there! Although, saying that, I think there's a bus stop along the road, and you can walk a little while to Iwade and catch a frequent bus from there.

 

[atomicdanny]

Interestingly, some people think that the word "chav" actually derives from Chatham!

If you had been there, you'd understand why its a dump!

 

[D841 Roebuck]

I "did" Sheerness a couple of years ago.

I was staying at Folkestone (very pleasant B&B near station) and had a 3 day Kent rover with the aim of a bit of track bashing.

On the Friday I spent the morning at the RHDR, then worked my way round to Sheerness via Dover, the rare curve at Minster and Sittingbourne. Had a walk to the front for a view of Sarfend, then had time for a pint and a curry before heading for Newington, again scratching in the rare curve. Then crossed over and back to Folkestone via Canterbury.

I too had the pleasure of seeing a couple of mouthy fare-dodging youths evicted at Swale. I wonder if there is a breeding colony of them somewhere amongst the mudflats?

(Notebook inaccessible at the moment, but the Sheerness units working that day were 466005/036).

 

[user15681]

Actually, there is one perk from the Sheerness line. It's that every weekday, 2 passenger trains run over the Western Junction at Sittingbourne (going from Gillingham to Sheerness on Sea at 05:00 and the other direction at 21:32). Very few travel on this stretch, definitely one to do if you're in the area.

 

[Tubeboy]

Apart from the former Steel trains, any freight on this line? A friend of mine recently went to a house viewing in Queenborough, he said the area was very chavvy, and not the sort of place you would go to after dark. Mind you that could be true for lots of areas!

 

[466.networkers]

Apart from the former Steel trains, any freight on this line? A friend of mine recently went to a house viewing in Queenborough, he said the area was very chavvy, and not the sort of place you would go to after dark. Mind you that could be true for lots of areas!

Since the steelworks closed - zero, zip, zilch, nada. Just the (rare) 465s and the usual 466s and MPVs are seen on the line nowadays.

I laughed at the idea of a fare evader getting kicked off at Swale, that has got to be one of the most remote, desolate stations in the south of England! There's literally nothing there at all except the bridges... he/she must have had a very long miserable walk home, serves them right

It would be a punishment itself being left there! Although, saying that, I think there's a bus stop along the road, and you can walk a little while to Iwade and catch a frequent bus from there.

TempleRyan is correct, the Arriva 334 bus is every 30/60 mins and there's a bus stop by Swale station.

I too had the pleasure of seeing a couple of mouthy fare-dodging youths evicted at Swale. I wonder if there is a breeding colony of them somewhere amongst the mudflats?

(Notebook inaccessible at the moment, but the Sheerness units working that day were 466005/036).

With no barriers at any stations except Sittingbourne fare evasion is rather high, and the TOC won't do anything about it. The RPIs rarely have a block on the line and if they do catch someone they give fake details half the time ...

Actually, there is one perk from the Sheerness line. It's that every weekday, 2 passenger trains run over the Western Junction at Sittingbourne (going from Gillingham to Sheerness on Sea at 05:00 and the other direction at 21:32). Very few travel on this stretch, definitely one to do if you're in the area.

2U91 0500 GLM-SSS and 2U92 SSS-GLM are the only two trains that use the Western Junction. They would run as ECS but Southeastern decided to put them in revenue earning (hahaha) service.

 

[wolfman]

People up north think Kent's posh, they don't know the (east) half of it!

too true,spent some time on the SR and married a kentish woman,from dartford to faversham can only be described as a crap hole.......garden of england yeah right.

 

[yorksrob]

too true,spent some time on the SR and married a kentish woman,from dartford to faversham can only be described as a crap hole.......garden of england yeah right.

Rochester is quite attractive (very good castle).