Biography

Cliftonville Curve
Cliftonville Curve
	The Cliftonville Curve looking northeastwards
Overview
Owner	Network Rail
Locale	Hove, Preston Village, Brighton, East Sussex
Termini	Hove; Preston Park;
Connecting lines	West Coastway; Brighton Main;
Stations	2: Hove, Preston Park
Service
Operator(s)	Southern
History
Opened	July 1879
Technical
Number of tracks	2
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge

Cliftonville Curve is a short railway that links the West Coastway Line to the Brighton Main Line between Hove and Preston Park.^[1] It was opened in July 1879.^[1]^[2] The curve includes a 535-yard (489 m) tunnel.^[2]

The line, which is also known as the Cliftonville Spur,^[3] was named in reference to Cliftonville station (now called Hove) which had opened in 1865.^[4] Cliftonville was an area of Hove which was developed speculatively as a "fashionable neighbourhood" in the mid-19th century.^[5] Construction of the curve allowed trains to travel between the Brighton Main Line and the West Coastway Line without having to reverse at Brighton,^[3] reducing congestion there and shortening journeys.^[2]

References

^ ^a ^b Jeffs 2013, chpt. "A Brief History of the 'Brighton'"
^ ^a ^b ^c Hymans 2016, chpt. "The West Coast Route"
^ ^a ^b Middleton 1979, p. 55.
^ Middleton 1979, p. 54.
^ Middleton 1979, p. 53.

Bibliography

Hymans, Michael (2016). Sussex Steam. Stroud: Amberley Publishing. ISBN 978-1-445663-06-7.
Jeffs, Simon (2013). The London to Brighton Line Through Time. Stroud: Amberley Publishing. ISBN 978-1-445609-79-9.
Middleton, Judy (1979). A History of Hove. Chichester: Phillimore & Co. ISBN 0-85033-325-3.

External links

Brighton Loco Works: Chapter 3

50°50′02″N 0°09′36″W / 50.83395°N 0.15991°W / 50.83395; -0.15991

[london-to-brighton-jeffs-1] Jeffs 2013, chpt. "A Brief History of the 'Brighton'"

[sussex-steam-2] Hymans 2016, chpt. "The West Coast Route"

[Middleton55-3] Middleton 1979, p. 55.

[Middleton54-4] Middleton 1979, p. 54.

[Middleton53-5] Middleton 1979, p. 53.

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