Railwatch 079 - April 1999

South West

By Gerard Duddridge

Road over rail The upgraded A30 road has carved straight across the track of an old railway which could and should have been reopened. RDS South West has been campaigning for seven years for the trackbed of the Feniton to Sidmouth to be preserved so an Exeter-Sidmouth rail service which could also serve Ottery St Mary could be reinstated.

Sidmouth has a population of over 13,000, the line was only eight miles long to the junction with the existing South Western main line at Feniton and a through service to Exeter would have benefited both places. The bus takes 44 minutes from Exeter to Sidmouth but a train from the Central station would be 12 minutes faster with four stops and 20 minutes faster with one stop.

RDS lost the case at the A30 public inquiry for a suitable bridging height but later identified a new way of bridging the new A30. With the new Government in place, RDS South West made contact with a local MP (copy to the Secretary of State at the Department of Transport). No trace was ever found of the two letters which must have gone missing!

To be fair, Ben Bradshaw has been as supportive as he can but Baroness Hayman wrote to him on 16 September 1997 and again on 12 March 1998 and rejected any change to the road. Another missed opportunity for rail despite that fact that we have done our best to provide the right signals for politicians and planners. Change is a long time coming.

Cuts on the way Depending on whether Devon County Council funding is forthcoming, there could be a reduction of between two and four trains per day to Barnstaple in the summer timetable. Many newspapers have described the North Devon line as rural, but Barnstaple is anything but rural. It has a population of around 20,400, about the same as Penzance which has a much better train service. Barnstaple is the regional centre for North Devon and the station serves a catchment area for a further 45,000 people — hardly a small village station! If the Barnstaple line is to have service cuts on the basis that it passes through a rural area, then any main line in Britain could be vulnerable. The real reason is probably Wales & West's financial position and part of the blame should reside with the Franchise Director (OPRAF) for permitting a reduced service level when he set the Passenger Service Requirement (PSR). The RDS model franchise suggested an hourly service. Despite comments from the government of the day that private sector "flair and innovation" would lead to improved service levels above the minimum specified in the PSR, RDS always suspected that this would leave the door open for the train operating company to cut services if it wished.

Devon refusal Deputy environment director Dr Ian Harrison reaffirmed Devon County Council's position that it would not support reopening of the Okehampton-Tavistock rail link at a recent RDS South West conference. The council's stance was condemned and one delegate said all Devon had to do was to give planning support for the scheme. This would allow private finance to fund it. However, Dr Harrison said the council was keen to support the existing network and make sure that Railtrack recognises its obligation to keep the Dawlish route open 365 days a year.

Dr Harrison saw buses and trains as complementary and new Government funding was allowing development of a network of core routes with other buses linking into nodal points. The Plymouth-Okehampton-Barnstaple service 86 was an example of a core route.

On the recently reopened Okehampton-Exeter rail line, Dr Harrison said he was keen to develop Saturday services using the new rail initiatives funding, but was sceptical about a Monday to Friday service as he felt there was insufficient demand.

Andrew Seedhouse of Plymouth City Council, talked about progress towards reopening the Plymouth to Tavistock railway. Known as the Drake Line, it had been proved to be technically feasible and socially and economically desirable in the long term. The cost would be £7.5million which had yet to be found. The scheme was included in the 1999-2000 Transport Policies and Programme bid to the Government.

Jane Siegal of the Okehampton OK group explained how the reopening of the Okehampton line on Sundays helped rejuvenate the town's economy. The rail service and station had helped to develop Okehampton as a walking centre for Dartmoor. Local businesses had benefited. Roger Emmett of Sustrans, which is converting the old Okehampton-Tavistock rail line into a cycle path, talked about the aim to get people to start walking and cycling. Mr Emmett's view is that if wider society wishes the railway to be opened, then it can be. He thought it would take five to 10 years to reopen the line if wider society agrees, and that having use of the route as a cycle way must be an advantage until that time comes. A conference report is being compiled by the Railway Development Society. Anyone who would like a copy on publication should send an A4 SAE to the Secretary, 149 Polwithen Drive, Carbis Bay, St Ives, Cornwall TR26 2SW.

Wenford Dries Update The environmental impact study has now been completed and generally finds in favour reopening the rail option for freight. In addition it states how a cycle way may be incorporated alongside the proposed line. In the meantime, one of the chief objectors, Richard Moore, is believed to have moved out of the area completely. All eyes are now on English China Clays, which is apparently considering its position concerning the rail link.

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