Rye and Camber Tramway

Gauge: 3 ft (914 mm)

The Rye and Camber Tramway ran from Rye in East Sussex for just under 2 miles to Camber Sands. Opened in 1895, it closed after the war in 1947.

The Rye and Camber Tramway was constructed between January and July 1895 and ran entirely on private land. It was the first railway designed by consulting engineer Holman F. Stephens, who went on to build and run small railways all over the Country.

The line was built to convey golfers to the Rye Golf Club and ran from Rye station to the golf club. In 1908 the first extension to Camber Sands station was opened and the intermediate station renamed “Golf Links”. Camber terminal was moved to a more accessible site and a tea hut was opened at the end of summer 1938, but this only used for a few months as the war intervened the next year.

During the war, the railway was used for constructing P.L.U.T.O. (Pipe Line Under The Ocean).

By the end of the war, the line was in poor condition and was sold for scrap in 1947. The Rye & Camber Tramways Co. Ltd was liquidated in February 1949.

Number / NameManufacturerTypeNotes
CamberW.G. Bagnall No.1461 of 18952-4-0TScrapped 1947
VictoriaW.G. Bagnall No.1511 of 18972-4-0TSold 1937
Kent Construction and Engineering Company Motor Rail “Simplex” design of 19244w PMSold 1946