Cornwall travellers to benefit as Dartmoor railway line returns
Services between Okehampton and Exeter will resume all year-round for the first time in half a century
Last updated 17th Oct 2021
For the first time in nearly 50 years, regular passenger services will run on the Dartmoor Line.
Services will launch on Saturday 20 November, marking the first reopening under the Government’s 'Restoring Your Railway' programme.
The route will connect Exeter St Davids, Crediton and Okehampton, providing a launchpad for visitors to explore Dartmoor and regional links for local commuters. Around half of services, including at peak times, will also carry onto Exeter Central.
The reopening of the route is expected to boost local businesses, the tourism sector, and provide greater access to education and work for thousands of people who live locally.
Great Western Railway bosses say it will also benefit people living in Cornwall as it will save them needing to drive to Exeter.
The Department and its partners have accelerated the reopening of the railway, delivering passenger services in only 9 months.
Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said: "The project, funded by over £40million from the Department for Transport, is part of the wider campaign to reverse catastrophic cuts to the rail network primarily led by the Beeching axe.
"The work has been a successful collaboration between the DfT, Network Rail, GWR, Devon County Council, Devon and Cornwall Rail Partnership, and local campaigners and MPs."
Mark Hopwood, GWR Managing Director, said: "Working with our partners at Network Rail and in the community we have long campaigned for the re-opening of this important local line, and we are really looking forward to being able to start running passenger trains again.
"With the start of services now just over a month away, this announcement is great news for communities surrounding Okehampton who will once again be connected to the national network.
"We’ve been working hard with Network Rail and local partners, including Devon County Council, to help prepare the line and the station at Okehampton for reopening on 20 November and this work will continue after 20 November as we develop the station facilities."
Regular passenger services will run on the route for the first time since 1972 following years of campaigning by local supporters. Since 1997, the line has only been open during the summer.
More work will be carried out over the winter including further work on the station buildings to enable the restoration of the café and other facilities.