Avocet Line

Avocet Line
280px Alongside the River Exe near Lympstone
Overview
Type	Heavy rail
System	National Rail
Status	Open
Locale	Devon
Termini	Exeter St Davids Exmouth
Stations	10
Operation
Opened	1862
Owner	Network Rail
Operator(s)	Great Western Railway
Character	Commuter
Depot(s)	Exeter
Rolling stock	Classes 143, 150 and 153
Technical
Line length	11.25 miles (18 km)
No. of tracks	1 or 2
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Loading gauge	RA6 / W6A
Operating speed	70 mph (110 km/h)

The Avocet Line is the railway line in England connecting Exeter with Exmouth. It was originally built by the London and South Western Railway, and was historically known as the Exmouth branch railway. The line follows the Exe Estuary for most of its route, giving views of the estuary. The line is named after the pied avocet, which lives in the estuary.

History

Main article: Exmouth branch railway

Route

The towns and cities served are:

• Exeter
• Digby
• Sowton
• Topsham
• Exton
• Lympstone
• Exmouth

The route follows the West of England Main Line in the suburbs of Exeter before diverging to the south.

There is a ferry service from Exmouth harbour to Starcross railway station on the opposite shore of the River Exe.

Services

For many years the passenger services on the line have been provided by Wessex Trains, and since 2006 by Great Western Railway, using Class 150 or Class 153 diesel multiple units (DMUs) either singly or in multiple. However, from December 2007 First Great Western introduced Class 142 'Pacers' and more recently, Class 143 'Pacers' to release other DMUs for refurbishment. Since December 2011, the Class 142 units have returned to Northern Rail.

The section in Exeter is shared with South West Trains West of England services to London Waterloo as far as Exmouth Junction (between St James Park and Polsloe Bridge). The daytime frequency is a train every 30 mins, although trains only stop once an hour at Polsloe Bridge, St James Park, Exton and Lympstone Commando. The latter two stations are request stops.

Infrastructure

The line is double track from Exeter Central to Exmouth Junction, but is single thereafter except for a passing loop at Topsham, where many trains are scheduled to cross each other. All movements on the line are under the control of the signal box at Exmouth Junction, which remotely operates the level crossing at Topsham as well as the loop there.

Passenger volume

Avocet Line

Legend miles Tarka Line to Barnstaple Great Western Main Line to London Paddington Cowley Bridge Junction Red Cow Crossing 0.00 Exeter St Davids Exeter St Davids Junction Riviera Line to Paignton also Penzance St Davids Tunnel 184 yards (168 m) 0.78 Exeter Central 1.25 St James Park Blackboy Tunnel 262 yards (240 m) Mount Pleasant Road Halt 1.89 Exmouth Junction West of England Main Line to London Waterloo 2.31 Polsloe Bridge Clyst St Mary and Digby Halt 4.14 Digby and Sowton A379 Newcourt M5 Topsham Crossing 6.21 Topsham River Clyst (114 yards) 7.73 Exton 8.18 Lympstone Commando 9.24 Lympstone Village River Exe To Sidmouth Junction 11.29 Exmouth

The busiest station on the branch is Exmouth, which is the fifth busiest in Devon. The numbers of passengers using the line each year have shown an increase in particular Digby & Sowton and St James Park. Comparing all stations on the year beginning April 2002 to the Year beginning April 2010 there are a variety of trends. The biggest increases have been at Digby & Sowton by 157% and St James Park with 105%. The increases in descending order from there are Topsham by 89%, Polsloe Bridge by 82%, Exton by 60%, Lympstone Village by 31% and the smallest with Exmouth by 6%. Meanwhile, Lympstone Commando has declined by 33%.

Station usage
Station Name	2002–03	2004–05	2005–06	2006–07	2007–08	2008–09	2009–10	2010–11	2011–12	2012–13	2013–14
St James Park	27,233	27,477	27,428	31,716	36,354	43,348	46,754	55,910
Polsloe Bridge	45,879	43,788	43,773	51,264	54,094	62,722	70,038	83,598
Digby & Sowton	120,505	134,804	155,822	201,954	247,452	275,978	271,316	310,216
Topsham	105,717	127,903	138,905	156,153	172,818	183,006	186,056	199,484
Exton	12,059	10,583	10,255	11,505	12,214	14,790	15,834	19,312
Lympstone Commando	70,940	55,875	62,141	64,024	57,766	65,156	60,558	47,660
Lympstone Village	64,361	63,325	66,739	70,890	67,583	80,338	77,700	84,206
Exmouth	735,674	623,832	611,451	677,036	697,339	731,866	722,922	779,130
The annual passenger usage is based on sales of tickets in stated financial years from Office of Rail Regulation statistics. The statistics are for passengers arriving and departing from each station and cover twelve month periods that start in April. Please note that methodology may vary year on year.