Perhaps some of the trains which start/finish at Honiton/Axminster could start/finish at Yeovil Pen Mill.

All the more reason for a line inland, if planning permission is eventually gramted.

Pink Floyd

I have recently reread The GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) in the 20th Century by OS^▸ (Ordnance Survey) Nock first published in 1964.
I was aware that there was something about a Dawlish cut-off line, there is on page 142.
I quote:-
"The picturesque line along the sea wall between Dawlish and Teignmouth was becoming so crowded as to be an embarrassment,
and to provide relief, and to give non-stopping trains a clear run, a new cut-off line was proposed from Dawlish Warren direct to
Newton Abbot tunnelling under Haldon Down.
Beyond Newton Abbot a new fast-running express route was proposed to the north of the present line, by passing the extremely
awkward gradients leading to Dainton tunnel, avoiding the sharply curved approaches to Totnes, and rejoining the present line at
high level near the summit of the Rattery incline.
With an alignment and grading designed for heavy modern traffic, a great amount of time could be saved, wear and tear of locomotives
much reduced and a great deal of double-heading avoided. Unfortunately neither of these interesting by pass lines got beyond the
proposed stage"
Think of it if these lines had been built what we would now be talking about to say nothing of the time from from Paddington to Plymouth being greatly reduced.
However they were not and the need is now to repair the Dawlish line asap and to have a sensible discussion for the future.

Wasn't there a limitation on the type of locomotive able to cross meldon viaduct?
Would a HST^▸ (High Speed Train) be able to cross it or any of the proposed new trains to be made available
Following electrification of the GWML^▸ (Great Western Main Line)?

Pages 142 and 156 of the GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) in the 20th Century by O S Nock (Paperback) make interesting reading about the proposed Exeter to Newton Abbot route. One has only to look at a map of the network post the proposed electrification to see the great blank space that is the SouthWest peninsula. A new vision for the rail network in the far South West needs to be looked at as the present one of make do and mend is obviously not going to be fit for purpose in future especially with all the climate change that is being likely to happen. Some of the HS2^▸ (The next High Speed line(s)) money would be better spent reinforcing the rail network in the south west but this is unlikely to happen unless the government stops being so London centred.
The latest estimate for the line to be working again is 4-6 weeks, weather permitting!! Some thinking outside the box is required other than just repairing until the next time.

With problems between Castle Cary and Taunton, Exeter and Newton Abbot/Totnes as well as branch lines in Devon and Cornwall, no mention of Cowley Bridge so far, and various maintenance enhancements between Taunton and Tiverton Parkway various serious consideration needs to be given to doubling the line completely between Castle Cary and Yeovil Junction, Yeovil Junction  and Exeter to provide a more robust alternative to Paddington to Exeter via Castle Cary. With regard to Dawlish I believe the Environment Agency has drawn up a 10 point plan to protect the line through Dawlish but the recent ongoing events would appear to be considerably worse than what happened in the 1960's. Perhaps consideration should be given to reinstating the line between Exeter and Plymouth via Okehampton or digging out the GWR^▸ (Great Western Railway) plans from the archives of Devon County Council for a faster inland route between Exeter and Newton Abbot. In this day and age it is a poor reflection of how the South West peninsula is perceived in Whitehall from a railway point of view. I know there will be a cost whatever is eventually decided, but the fact that at the present time a City as large as Plymouth is effectively not connected to the rest of the rail network is a disgrace, well done Beeching and the old regional rivalries which still persist to this day which decimated the routes in the South West!!

It is almost a year since work commenced on the South Devon Link Road and the area which shows the most change to date with huge mounds of earth and cuttings is the area around Aller Junction. Gone is the viewing point where the Main line to Plymouth and Cornwall and the Torquay branch diverged blocked by large concrete walls. It is also possible to see where the tunnel which will take the road over the Torquay branch will be situated. In addition three culverts will be installed directly under the 4 tracks from Newton Abbot over the Christmas period as part of the flood prevention scheme. Let us hope the engineers have got their calculations correct as it would be a nightmare if the line ever became flooded a la Cowley bridge. In addition another favourite viewing spot will disappear forever, the existing twin arch bridge over the four tracks between Newton Abbot and Aller Junction will be demolished and removed on Christmas Day. I understand that buses will replace trains on the Torquay branch on 27 and 28 |December

With all the talk of Yeovil Junction, how about trains from Weymouth being able to call at Yeovil Junction with a link similar to that proposed back in the 1860's but never built. It would mean trains reversing at Yeovil Junction  for Pen Mill but it does seem a nonsense that there are no trains scheduled between these two stations

Back in the late 1950's early 1960's there was a newspaper stand in that area. I remember it well as it was where I bought my NME before going to School having travelled from St. Austell

Trainbuff is correct. I live in Kingskerswell and the proposed bypass(a misnomer as it bypasses nothing but goes through Kingskerswell) is a waste of money. It is amazing how both Torbay and Devon County Council can find money when they are cutting back both services and staff. The proposed ^100 million plus cost would have been better spent on improving rail sevices throughout Devon

This would have been Charlestown Primary School and not Penrice Community College

Would have thought it difficult to see the actual strike from the School as it is not adjacent to the railway line 

Thanks for the information. Taunton photo was excellent. Must start saving my pennies, quite fancy a trip on the Northern Belle now having visited the website.

I live in Kingskerswell just down from Aller Junction. Today at lunch time I saw a double headed diesel train going towards Paignton/Dartmouth with a mixture of different liveried coaches. I was aware of this special.
However 15 minutes ago I saw heading towards Newton Abbot, a doubled headed diesel train with 11 coaches all in chocolate and cream and looking magnificent in the poor weather. Does anybody know who ran this train and where I could obtain further information about it?