link was never constructed. At the start of 1923, the SER, LCDR and SE&CR amalgamated with other railways to form the Southern Railway following in the Railways Act 1921. The line was electrified from Hastings to Ore in 1935, and electric services began on 7 July. This was done in order that trains could be serviced in a siding away from the centre of Hastings. The siding closed in May 1986. Electrification through to Ashford was planned, but abandoned in 1939 when the war started. It was revived for the Kent electrification scheme Phase 2 of the British Railways Modernisation Plan in the early 1960s, which included some preparatory work such as a footbridge at Rye. The plans were later dropped. A regular hourly service was introduced in 1959, with additional peak services. This schedule has been largely unchanged. Threatened closure The line was recommended for closure by Dr. Richard Beeching in the 1963 Beeching Report as it attracted less than 10,000 passengers a week. Like other lines threatened with closure, there was strong opposition, and the route survived because the nearby road network made it impractical to run a replacement bus service. The parallel A259 from Hastings to Brenzett had several level crossings over the line and a hairpin bend at Winchelsea, all of which remain as of the 21st century. The local member of parliament for Rye, Bryant Godman Irvine made a significant Commons speech complaining about the decision to close the line. As well as the A259, he complained that a lack of rail service would hinder holidaymakers, prevent children from getting to school easily, and remove the potential profitability of being able to move freight via rail. At the same time as the Beeching Report was published, Arthur Irvine complained that a bus took an hour to travel the between Rye and Ashford. To make a case against closure and save money, the main line was temporarily made single track between Appledore and Ore from June 1965, which lasted until September 1966. On 23 February 1966, the Ministry of Transport confirmed the branch to New Romney would close to passengers, which it did on 6 March 1967. It was kept open for freight as far as a nuclear flask loading and unloading point just outside Dungeness. This branch continues to run a regular service for this purpose, and occasional special passenger trains have been run for