Bluebell Railway, Heritage railway in East Sussex, United Kingdom.
The Bluebell Railway is a heritage line in East Sussex that runs on nearly 11 miles of track between Sheffield Park and East Grinstead, with steam locomotives traveling through gentle hills and woodland. Four stations along the route preserve the appearance and fittings of British country stations from the pre-war era.
The line reopened on August 7, 1960, as Britain's first preserved steam railway after British Railways closed the original East Grinstead to Lewes connection. Volunteers purchased locomotives and carriages from different British railway companies and gradually rebuilt the track over the following decades.
The name comes from the wild bluebells that bloom along the trackside each spring, carpeting the embankments in blue. Visitors experience travel as it was before World War II, with conductors in period uniforms walking through compartments and checking tickets.
Each of the four stations along the route offers parking and access to the trains, with Sheffield Park and East Grinstead having the largest facilities. The journey through the countryside takes about an hour and a half for the full route, and visitors can board or leave at any station.
The line maintains the second-largest collection of steam locomotives in the country after the National Railway Museum. Some of the carriages running on the railway are more than a century old and once served on main routes between London and the coast.
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