Bristol–Exeter line

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Bristol to Exeter line
standard gauge
Operating speed110 mph (177 km/h) maximum
Route map

(Click to expand)

The Bristol to Exeter line is a major branch of the

Exeter to Plymouth line. It was one of the principal routes of the pre-1948 Great Western Railway[1] which were subsequently taken over by the Western Region of British Railways and are now part of the Network Rail
system.

History

The line was built by the

Durston was reconstructed as a mixed gauge line to accommodate local 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) gauge traffic. The remainder of the line was laid with mixed gauge by 1 June 1875 and broad gauge trains ceased operation on 20 May 1892.[2]

The Bristol and Exeter Railway took over its own operations from 1 May 1849 but amalgamated with the GWR on 1 January 1876.

On 1 July 1906 the Langport and Castle Cary Railway line was opened which enabled London to Taunton trains to run on a shorter route instead of the "Great Way Round" through Bristol.

The Great Western Railway was nationalised on 1 January 1948 into the Western Region of British Railways.

In 1977 the Parliamentary Select Committee on Nationalised Industries recommended considering

1976–79 Labour government
the proposal was not implemented. At present, there are no plans to electrify the line or any other lines mentioned, although locals are campaigning for electrification of the line from Bristol to Weston-Super-Mare.

The Bristol to Taunton Line is now part of Route 13 of the Network Rail system.

Route

Bristol to Weston-super-Mare

Communities served: Bristol (including the suburb of Bedminster) – Nailsea and Backwell – Yatton – Weston-super-Mare (including the suburb of Worle)

On leaving Bristol Temple Meads the line passes through suburban Bedminster and Parson Street railway stations.[5] This section of the route has three tracks and, as far as Bedminster, the centre track is reversible to give some flexibility for regulating trains in the Temple Meads area. After passing through a short, deep cutting at Parson Street, the Portbury branch line diverges on the right.

The line climbs westwards up past

Wells (left); the latter is now a footpath and cycleway as far as Cheddar.[8]

Beyond Yatton the line runs across the low-lying North Marsh with

signal box is retained to supervise the two level crossings. The line passes beneath the M5 motorway approaching Puxton and then comes to Worle railway station on the outskirts of Weston-super-Mare. A short distance beyond the station is Worle Junction where a single-track branch diverges to the right to serve Weston Milton and Weston-super-Mare railway stations.[6]
There is a crossing loop at Weston-super-Mare, beyond which the single track continues to rejoin the main line at Uphill Junction.

Weston-super-Mare to Taunton

Communities served: Weston-super-Mare – Highbridge and Burnham-on-Sea – Bridgwater – Taunton

The line has now swung round to head south. At

Brent Knoll railway station with the isolated hill that it was named for close by on the left. The next open station is Highbridge and Burnham; this is in Highbridge but also serves co-joined Burnham-on-Sea. The Somerset and Dorset Joint Railway
used to cross the line on the level just north of the station; their locomotive works were on the site of the industrial units visible to the left as the line passes through the station.

More level ground brings the line to

Hinkley Point B Nuclear Power Station. Beyond the station, on the right, used to be the carriage works of the Bristol and Exeter Railway[10] but the site is now lost beneath modern industrial units. The line now crosses over the River Parrett
on the Somerset Bridge and then passes below the M5 again.

The

Chard branch line on the left. The final run into Taunton sees the River Tone appear alongside on left and the canal passes beneath the line to join the river at Firepool, behind the site of the former goods yard on the same side.[2]

Taunton to Exeter

Communities served: Taunton – Tiverton and Willand – Exeter

The line leaves Taunton and passes the engineer's depot at

Fairwater Yard on the same side. The former Norton Fitzwarren railway station is the location of two serious collisions and a fatal train fire. The West Somerset Railway diverges on the right and work is under way to provide new facilities here for this heritage railway which includes relaying track for a short distance along the old Devon and Somerset Railway that formed a third route in between the main line and the West Somerset. On the left of the line an embankment marks the remains of the Grand Western Canal
.

After passing over Victory Crossing at

City of Truro became the first locomotive to exceed 100 miles per hour (160 km/h).[12]

Through the tunnel and into

Tiverton Junction railway station
.

The motorway service station on the left marks the site of

standard gauge wagons used by the London and South Western Railway to Yeovil and Barnstaple.[13] Passing over the wide Red Cow level crossing, the line comes to Exeter St Davids railway station
.

Services

A Class 166 approaching Weston-super-Mare

All stations on the route are served by

Class 255 'Castle' trains. London services are operated using Class 800 and 802
trains.

The other operator on the route is CrossCountry, which provides trains between Scotland and north-east England and Paignton, Plymouth or Penzance.[17] Trains are mostly formed of Class 220 and 221 units, working either singly or in pairs, although each day also sees a few workings using HST sets.

Infrastructure

The route has a line speed limit of 100 miles per hour (160 km/h) with local variations, the main one being the 110 mph from approx. Bleadon (138-44) to Huntspill (147-00); trains from Bristol to Taunton are described as travelling in the 'down' direction. It is constructed to Route Availability 8 and freight loading gauge W8. It has Multiple Aspect Signals (MAS) and Track Circuit Block (TCB) controlled from the panel

Puxton and Worle controls the two level crossings at Hewish and Puxton, and an emergency panel at Weston-super-Mare
can take control of the section from Hewish to Uphill Junction if required.

The

21st Century modernisation of the Great Western Main Line has included electrification of the main line from London to Bristol Parkway however this is not planned to be extended onto the Bristol to Exeter line.[18] Trains are now a hybrid of diesel and electric power (Bimodes
) which can run on non electrified routes south of Bristol.

The

Greater Bristol Metro, which aims to enhance transport capacity in the Bristol area.[19][20]

There have also been calls for a dedicated railway line to Bristol Airport, branching off from the main line somewhere near Flax Bourton.[21]

See also

  • Disused railway stations (Bristol to Exeter Line)
  • Disused railway stations (Exeter to Plymouth Line)
  • 21st-century modernisation of the Great Western Main Line

References

  1. ISBN 0-71100-320-3
    .
  2. ^ a b c MacDermot, E.T. (1931). History of the Great Western Railway. Vol. II 1863-1921. London: Great Western Railway.
  3. ^ Central Publicity Unit 1979, pp. 0–2.
  4. ^ Central Publicity Unit 1979, p. 8.
  5. ISBN 1-904349-09-9
    .
  6. ^
    ISBN 1-904537-54-5
    .
  7. ISBN 0-906867-52-5
    .
  8. ^ Sheppard, Geoff (2001). "Walk the Strawberry Line". Broadsheet (45). Broad Gauge Society: 21–29.
  9. ^ Historic England, "THE DEVILS BRIDGE, BLEADON HILL (1129720)", National Heritage List for England, retrieved 2 September 2021
  10. ISBN 0-948975-26-1
    .
  11. ^ MacDermot, E.T. (1931). History of the Great Western Railway. Vol. II, 1863–1921. London: Great Western Railway. pp. not cited.
  12. ^ Andrews, David (2008). "Special Experimental Tests — More Pieces of the City of Truro Puzzle". BackTrack. 22 (2). Pendragon Publishing: 116–121.
  13. ISBN 978-1-904349-55-6
    .
  14. ^ "National Rail Timetable 134" (PDF).
  15. ^ "National Rail Timetable 125" (PDF).
  16. ^ "National Rail Timetable 135 (Winter 2007)" (PDF). Network Rail. Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 February 2008. Retrieved 14 May 2021.
  17. ^ "National Rail Timetable 51" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 February 2008. Retrieved 17 February 2011.
  18. ^ "Bristol to London line to be electrified". This Is Bristol. Northcliffe Media. 23 July 2009. Retrieved 5 April 2012.
  19. ^ White, James (13 March 2009). "Item 04: Greater Bristol Metro" (PDF). West of England Partnership. Archived from the original (PDF) on 15 May 2011. Retrieved 28 December 2011.
  20. ^ "A campaign to revolutionise Bristol's local rail service that could see trains from Temple Meads serving all local stations every half hour is being launched today". This Is Bristol. Northcliffe Media. 17 January 2012. Retrieved 19 January 2012.
  21. ^ Roy Hutchinson (17 September 2009). "Rail link to airport would help cut pollution". This is Bristol. Archived from the original on 10 December 2015. Retrieved 9 April 2012.

Sources and further reading

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bristol to Exeter Line.
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