Exeter to Plymouth Line

The Exeter to Plymouth line is a central part of the trunk railway line between London Paddington and Penzance railway stations in the southern United Kingdom. It is a major branch of the Great Western Main Line and runs from Exeter, to Plymouth, from where it continues as the Cornish Main Line. It was one of the principal routes of the pre-1948 Great Western Railway^[1] which were subsequently taken over by the Western Region of British Railways and are now part of the Network Rail system.

History

The line only became a through route on 2 July 1906 when the Langport and Castle Cary Railway was completed. Before this, from 5 May 1848, through trains from London to Plymouth had run via Bristol: this is often called the "Great Way Round" and a few trains still take this route.^[2]

The various sections of line were opened:

• Exeter to Teignmouth – 30 May 1846^[3][4]
• Teignmouth to Newton – 30 December 1846^[3]
• Newton to Totnes – 20 July 1847^[3]
• Totnes to Laira – 5 May 1848^[3]
• Laira to Plymouth – 2 April 1849^[3]

The Reading to Hungerford section was promoted as the Berks and Hants Railway; from there to Patney & Chirton by the Berks and Hants Extension Railway; and from Westbury to Castle Cary by the Wilts, Somerset and Weymouth Railway. The section from Cogload Junction to Exeter was built by the Bristol and Exeter Railway, which company's Yeovil branch became part of the new main line between Curry Rivel Junction and Athelney Junction, and including Athelney station. The section between Exeter and Plymouth was built by the South Devon Railway.

The nominally independent companies had all been amalgamated into the Great Western Railway by 1 February 1876, and the remaining 7 ft 0 ¹⁄₄ in (2,140 mm) broad gauge lines were closed on 20 May 1892 and converted to 4 ft 8 ¹⁄₂ in (1,435 mm) standard gauge over the following weekend. A series of cut-off lines were constructed during the following 15 years which saw the through route established. The Great Western was nationalised on 1 January 1948 to become a part of the new British Railways.

Resignalling during the 1980s allowed faster running. This was followed by privatisation in the 1990s, first being transferred to Railtrack and now, following its demise, on to Network Rail.

Route

Exeter to Newton Abbot

Communities served: Exeter – Starcross (and Exmouth via a seasonal ferry service) – Dawlish Warren – Dawlish – Teignmouth – Newton Abbot

On leaving Exeter St Davids railway station the line to Exeter Central climbs away on the left passing the Panel Signal Box by the entrance to the Exeter TMD where local First Great Western DMUs are maintained. The old South Devon Railway main line,^[5] crosses the River Exe and a parallel flood relief channel, and then passes above the suburbs of Exeter along a stone viaduct on which is situated Exeter St Thomas railway station. On the left a short line went down to the Exeter Canal at City Basin; on the right a longer branch ran to Heathfield on the Newton Abbot to Moretonhampstead branch.^[4]

The line crosses marshes as it runs alongside the canal and river, passing the site of Exminster railway station, with a George Hennet station house on the right.^[6] A square pond to the left of the line is the site of Turf engine house. This stretch of the line used to have long water troughs between the rails from which steam locomotives could refill their water tanks without stopping.^[6]

From Powderham Castle the railway is right alongside the river; on the right of the line is the castle's deer park, while on the left, across the river, trains on the Avocet Line run near Lympstone Commando railway station. The line now enters the village of Starcross beyond which is the pier for the Exmouth to Starcross Ferry and, on the right, the old Starcross engine house. A little further along the river the railway crosses the mouth of Cockwood harbour. Near the shipwreck here on the left was the 1,285 feet (392 m) long Exe Bight Pier, in use from 1869 for about ten years.^[6] The railway line opens out into four lines at Dawlish Warren railway station, where the platforms are alongside loop lines that allow fast trains to overtake stopping services.

The railway now comes onto the South Devon Railway sea wall which it shares with a footpath. Approaching Dawlish railway station, the Coastguard's Cottage was used by the railway during its construction ^[6] and then sold to the coastguard; their boat house is below the footbridge. The footpath along the sea wall now ends and the line enters its first tunnel, the 265 yards (242 m) Kennaway Tunnel^[7] beneath Lea Mount, beyond which is Coryton beach and then 227 yards (208 m) Coryton tunnel. The next beach is the private Shell Cove and then the railway passes through 49 yards (45 m) Phillot Tunnel and 58 yards (53 m) Clerk's Tunnel, emerging onto a section of sea wall at Breeches Rock before diving into 513 yards (469 m) Parson's Tunnel beneath Hole Head. The last two tunnels are named after the Parson and Clerk Rocks, two stacks in the sea off Hole Head. When the tunnel was dug the workers cut into a smugglers tunnel which ran from a hidden entrance above the cliff down to a secluded cove.

Beyond Parson's Tunnel is a short viaduct across Smugglers Lane and then the footpath resumes alongside the line for the final stretch of the Sea Wall past Sprey Point to the cutting at Teignmouth Eastcliff. On the right side of the railway near Sprey Point can be seen the remains of a lime kiln used during the construction of the line.^[6]

The railway passes through to Teignmouth railway station then continues through a cutting to emerge behind the busy Teignmouth Harbour, after which the railway resumes its course alongside the water, now the River Teign. The cuttings on both sides of the station were originally tunnels and were opened out between 1879 and 1884.^[6] The railway passes under the long Shaldon Bridge and then follows the river past the small promontories at Flow Point, Red Rock, and Summer House.

After leaving the riverside the line crosses Hackney Marshes and passes between the railway sidings at Hackney Yard (left), and the race course and former Moretonhampstead branch (right). The industrial area to the left of Newton Abbot railway station is the site of the South Devon Railway locomotive workshops – the older stone buildings are the only surviving railway buildings.

Newton Abbot to Plymouth

Communities served: Newton Abbot – Totnes – Ivybridge – Plymouth

Just outside Newton Abbot a line branches off on the left but continues to run alongside the main line. This is the Riviera Line to Paignton and the two routes part company at Aller Junction when the main line curves to the right to start the climb up past Stoneycombe Quarry to Dainton Tunnel. The line from Exeter to Plymouth was designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel as an atmospheric railway which allowed steeper gradients, sharper curves, and lighter structures. Atmospheric trains never ran beyond Newton Abbot but the legacy of the aborted scheme means that line speeds on towards Plymouth are lower than elsewhere on the route.

Once through Dainton Tunnel the line drops down past Littlehempston and shortly the South Devon Railway, a heritage railway, on the right. The line immediately crosses over the River Dart and arrives at Totnes railway station, which has passing loops to allow slower trains to be overtaken. Behind the right-hand platform can be seen a dairy which is built around the old atmospheric engine house.^[5]

The steep climb up Rattery Bank starts right from the end of the platform, a steep challenge in former days to trains that called at Totnes. At the top is Rattery Viaduct and the 869 yards (795 m)^[7] Marley Tunnel. The original single-track tunnel had a second bore added alongside it in 1893 when the line was doubled. The line is now running along the southern edge of Dartmoor. Brent railway station was once the junction for the Kingsbridge branch line which joined the route in the cutting just before the station. Curving to the left the line passes over the 57 yards (52 m) Brent Mill Viaduct and then the 163 yards (149 m) Glazebrook Viaduct.

After passing through the 47 yards (43 m) Wrangaton Tunnel the line passes through the remains of Wrangaton railway station; Monksmoor Siding on the right used to serve a naval stores depot. Just beyond the site of Bittaford Platform is the 132 yards (121 m) Bittaford Viaduct. The industrial buildings on the right were built as china clay dries where clay dug on Dartmoor was treated; the Redlake Tramway was built alongside the pipeline that carried the liquid clay.

The line now comes to Ivybridge railway station. The platforms here are staggered with the one on the left nearer Totnes than the one on the right.^[8] This station only opened in 1994; the original station closed in 1965 and was on the far side of the curving 229 yards (209 m)^[7] Ivybridge Viaduct where an old goods shed can be seen on the left. After the 309 yards (283 m) Blatchford Viaduct is the old Cornwood railway station where George Hennet's station house is on the right.

275 yards (251 m) Slade Viaduct brings rises to the top of Hemerdon Bank, the steepest climb for trains heading towards Newton Abbot. A fast run down the bank to the site of Plympton railway station, and then Tavistock Junction. The large goods yard here includes a maintenance shed for on-track equipment and a connection to the china clay drier at Marsh Mills. This is on the former South Devon and Tavistock Railway although the junction originally faced Plymouth.^[9]

The line swings left under the Marsh Mills Viaduct of the A38 road and then runs alongside the tidal estuary of the River Plym on the left, with the grounds of Saltram House at Plymstock on the far bank. Underneath the Embankment Road bridge which carries the A38 over the line again and Laira TMD on the left. Laira maintains First Great Western's High Speed Trains in Devon. A triangle of lines takes a freight route down to the Plymouth waterfront via the closed Friary station, which was the terminus for trains on the rival route from London Waterloo station.

Passing through the short Mutley Tunnel, trains emerge past the Royal Eye Infirmary (right) into Plymouth railway station. This was originally known as North Road Station as trains continued beyond it to Plymouth Millbay.^[5]

Current services

The majority of services on the route are operated by First Great Western. These services include the high speed trains from London Paddington to Penzance, Plymouth or Paignton.^[10] Some of these services travel through Reading and Bristol to join the line at Taunton. Other HST services operate from Paddington to Exeter, although some terminate at Westbury or Frome. The operator also provides local services along much of the line, including those between Reading and Bedwyn;^[11] Westbury and Castle Cary;^[12] and Exeter to Plymouth.^[10]

CrossCountry services operate between Taunton and Plymouth. These services travel north from Taunton through Bristol Temple Meads to either North East England/Scotland or North West England; some continue westwards beyond Plymouth.^[13]

Infrastructure

The route is double track throughout with passing loops at certain locations.^[14] The highest line-speed on the route is 110 mph (180 km/h).^[15] The route has a loading gauge clearance of W7 except Reading to Westbury and Taunton to Exeter which are the larger W8, and is open to rolling stock up to Route Availability 8. Signalling requires four minutes between trains on most of the route, but 8 minutes approaching Cogload Junction and 6 minutes west of Newton Abbot. Signalling is by multiple-aspect signals, controlled from panel signal boxes at Reading, Westbury, Exeter, and Plymouth, and level crossing boxes at Colthrop (near Thatcham) and Kintbury.^[15] Most of the signals are three-aspect, but some sections of two- or four-aspect signalling also exist. During 2010, control of the area currently signalled by Reading panel will transfer to the new Thames Valley Signalling Control Centre at Didcot.^[16]

The Network Rail Business Plan (2007) recognises that the heaviest traffic flows are on the section through Newbury where there is a large commuter traffic to London. The main pinch point is between Reading West and Southcote Junction where the route is shared with trains to and from Basingstoke and south coast ports. It is forecast that demand for journeys towards London can be met up to 2016 by increased service levels; three trains each hour will be needed to the west of England. By 2026 seating demand is forecast to be in excess of capacity from as far west as Westbury, and by as much as 14%. There are also significant current traffic levels and predicted growth on local services around Exeter.^[14]

Accidents

There have been a number of serious accidents on the line over the years. Some of the notable incidents were:

• Dawlish – collision, 22 September 1921.^[6]
• Sea Wall – landslip, 16 February 1855 and various other dates.^[6]
• Totnes – collision, 31 October 1853.^[5]
• Totnes – boiler explosion, 13 March 1860.^[5]
• Totnes – derailment, 5 April 1865.^[5]
• Rattery near Totnes – collision, 1 August 1853.^[5]
• Ivybridge – collision, 29 July 1862.^[5]
• Plympton – boiler explosion, 27 June 1849.^[5]
• Plympton – collision, 13 September 1866.^[5]
• Plymouth Millbay – buffer stop collision, 13 September 1866.^[5]

See also

• Disused railway stations (Bristol to Exeter Line)
• Disused railway stations (Exeter to Plymouth Line)

References

Further reading

• Beck, Keith; Copsey, John (1990). The Great Western in South Devon. Didcot: Wild Swan Publication. ISBN 0-906867-90-8. 
• Great Western Railway (1924). Through the Window. Number 1 – Paddington to Penzance. London: Great Western Railway. 
• Hesp, Martin (2008). "My magnificent rail journey". Western Morning News. Western Morning News. doi:2008-07-07. http://www.thisisplymouth.co.uk/news/magnificent-rail-journey/article-209062-detail/article.html. Retrieved 2008-07-14.