The BLHR were awarded the act of parliament to build the railway to Hastings, with an additional option to extend the line through Rye to Ashford.Meanwhile, the LBR and BLHR had amalgamated with other companies to form the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway, who became bitter rivals with the SER.The station was originally V-shaped allowing the two railway companies to have separate platforms and booking areas: one side for SER trains to pass through and the other as a terminal for LBSCR services.[8] The whole station was reconstructed in a neo-Georgian style in 1931 by the architect James Robb Scott and only the goods shed remained unchanged.[9][10] The station building was re-built in 2003, in a £8.6 million redevelopment as part of regenerating the local area by Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott.