Okehampton-Tavistock. Discussion on reopening and potential use as a diversionary route

[whole diary]

[The SprinterMeister]

Strange that on reading the documents available that 'The Titfield Thunderbolt' came to mind.

I rather thought that as well. The expectation seems to be that the residents of Okehampton will all forsake their cars & the established Western Greyhound / Stagecoach / Pearce & Crump bus services and dutifully trudge up the steep hill to Okehampton station to catch the train. I would think they will need at least 80% load factors to make it pay.

It also reminds me a bit of the very short lived Minehead - Bristol services which as it turned out carried insufficient traffic bar cranks who were merely doing the trip for the trips sake.

Devon County Council are said to be subsidising the venture. Whether or not this would last indefinitely would depend on Exeter's bid for unitary status which would affect the size of the financial pot.

[signalandtelegraph]

Noticed that page 3 of the document in the link mentions delays betwen Crediton and Exmouth Jct so it would seem that the service will run to Exeter Central and then layover in the sidings at Exmouth Jct.

Unfortunately the A30 is a lot more accesible for 'most' of Okehamptons residents than the station.

[anthony215]

I have been told that the operator will be getting some funding from the local council.

Couldnt a bus link be put on to link okehampton station & the town centre?

 depending on price i am sure a few people will use it, if this doesn come off i can see a few railway enthusiasts using the service

[The SprinterMeister]

What concerns me is it would take more than a few cranks to make the thing pay. You also have to bear in mind that if your average Devonian has to get in his / her car to access the public transport they will tend to drive the whole way or use an alternative mode of public transport. This has happened to an extent with the Barnstaple line where some of the stations South of Chumleigh have been progressively hit by the activities of the Turners Tours 369 / 377 service buses. Copplestone has held up quite well though as has Yeoford which isn't served by the buses.

Okehampton already has a fair few buses going through there (Stagecoach 315 & Western Greyhound 500 / 510) and it remains to be seen if they will transfer to the proposed train. You would also need to convert quite a few additional Okehamptonites to public transport in order to make it pay. Where it could score is speed although you need to bear in mind that Crediton - Okehampton is basically 55mph top speed with long stretches of 40mph thrown into the mix. It also depends if slots can be found through the busy Exeter St Davids - Exmouth Jn section without disrupting the existing Exmouth, Paignton & Waterloo services. There needs to be a robust system in place to recover the train should it fail as there is no means of assisting it with FGW^▸ (First Great Western) / SWT^▸ (South West Trains) should it jack between Crediton & Exmouth Jn, potentially disrupting FGW / SWT services.

I'm not condemning the idea, but I hope for their sakes that DCR have researched fully the potential markets and the amount of public transport already operating through / via Okehampton.

I wasn't aware Dartmoor Railway had any NR^» (Network Rail - home page) certified drivers / guards on their books & I don't remember seeing any vacancies advertised. Unless the plans haven't been fully firmed up yet.

[paul7575]

I have been told that the operator will be getting some funding from the local council.

The figures are shown in the linked track access application I posted earlier, that is a fact...

Paul

[RailCornwall]

The funding aspect will be complicated though, as has been mentioned. Exeter has been granted Unitary Status, which has prevoked much consternation and a review probably will be called for. If this review is unsuccessful the service will be going through two authorities which will add a layer of confusion to the plans.

[The SprinterMeister]

Exeter has been granted Unitary Status, which has prevoked much consternation and a review probably will be called for. If this review is unsuccessful the service will be going through two authorities which will add a layer of confusion to the plans.

Indeed. Removing the Exeter populace from the overall funding input of DCC^» (Devon County Council - website) will have large effect on DCC's ability to raise money for funding this sort of scheme. Not sure if Exeter City would in fact be willing to fund it as it isn't of great significance to Exeter residents anyway, other than perhaps for trips out for the day.

[slippy]

Totally off region but the same operator will at the same time be starting a service between Shildon and Stanhope.

[woody]

This from the BBC^» (British Broadcasting Corporation - home page) today
The Okehampton to Exeter Railway Line - last used by passenger services in 1972 - could be re-opened again.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/local/devon/hi/people_and_places/newsid_8587000/8587489.stm

[devon_metro]

"The Okehampton to Exeter Railway Line - last used by passenger services in 1972 "

Interesting quote. Presumably the Beeb can reference that!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[6 OF 2 redundant adjunct of unimatrix 01]

"The Okehampton to Exeter Railway Line - last used by passenger services in 1972 "

Interesting quote. Presumably the Beeb can reference that!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

maybe our good old pacers are magical time traveling donkeys on the sunday special 

[woody]

What concerns me is it would take more than a few cranks to make the thing pay. You also have to bear in mind that if your average Devonian has to get in his / her car to access the public transport they will tend to drive the whole way or use an alternative mode of public transport. 

Ivybridge has suffered from this problem.Like Okehampton the station is remote from most of the town which has easy access to the A38 and Plymouth its main market.A huge station car park with only a hand full of cars most times.Thus for Okehampton to compete with a main dual-carraigeway trunk route in these circumstances wont be easy.The Tavistock re-opening in 2014 has a far greater chance of success simply because the road alternative to Plymouth is poor and chronically congested in comparison.

[Chris from Nailsea]

While my local station is also not particularly central, being situated halfway between the town of Nailsea and the village of Backwell, it is nevertheless very successful in attracting local passengers.

The carpark here is already inadequate, being filled by 08:00 with commuter cars. Interestingly, many choose to drive to NLS from Yatton (because our parking is free, and it isn't at Yatton) or from Portishead, and even Clevedon to get a train (because it's still better than trying to drive all the way into Bristol, on the A370 or the A369, for example).

I live a ten minute walk from NLS - I do walk there, and catch the train into Bristol, rather than driving down to our station - or indeed all the way into Bristol.

I think there will similarly be a lot of people interested in using a train service between Okehampton and Exeter, when it becomes available.

[devon_metro]

Isn't parking at Yatton only ^1?

[smokey]

Ivybridge has suffered from this problem.Like Okehampton the station is remote from most of the town which has easy access to the A38 and Plymouth its main market. A huge station car park with only a hand full of cars most times. Thus for Okehampton to compete with a main dual-carraigeway trunk route in these circumstances wont be easy. The Tavistock re-opening in 2014 has a far greater chance of success simply because the road alternative to Plymouth is poor and chronically congested in comparison.

Well noises were made by RDS at the time. when plans were published that the Station at Ivybridge was on the wrong side of Ivybridge for a Plymouth Park and Ride service. would have more success as a Park and Ride for Exeter Services except ther's NO trains at the right times



Edit note: Chris, to amend quote marks.