Stenlake Publishing - The Exeter and Exmouth Railway
The Exeter and Exmouth Railway
Author : C. G. Maggs ISBN : 9780853614302 Cover : paperback Price : £8.95
For tens of thousands of holidaymakers and daytrippers their first sight of the beautiful resort town of Exmouth has been the railway station, which has served the town for more than 130 years. The Exmouth branch is an interesting line, being one of the few in the West Country which still features business and holiday traffic in appreciable quantity. It is a commuter line in the best original Southern Railway tradition. The first proposals for a railway to Exmouth go back to the birth railways in 1825, but it was to take until 1861 before the railway opened. The branch was little affected by either of the World Wars. In 1962 half a million journeys were made on the line, so it was a surprise when the Beeching Report of 1963 threatened closure. The branch has secured its place in railway history as the first line to be removed from the Beeching plan voluntarily – in other cases reprieve only came after the minister’s refusal to accept closure proposals.
