Avocet Line

Infobox generic
color = #efefef
name = Avocet Line|
img1 = Extonbldgs.jpg
cap1 = Exton railway station alongside the River Exe|
lbl1 = Location
row1 = Devon, England
lbl2 = From
row2 = Exeter St Davids
lbl3 = To
row3 = Exmouth
lbl4 = Distance
row4 = convert|11.25|mi|km|0
lbl6 = Owner
row6 = Network Rail
lbl7 = Principal operator
row7 = First Great Western|
hdr2 = Connecting routes|
lbl21 = At Exeter St Davids
row21 = London to Penzance Line
Riviera Line
Tarka Line
lbl22 = At Exmouth Junction
row22 = West of England Main Line|
hdr3 = Infrastructure|
lbl31 = Line speed
row31 = convert|70|mph|km/h|abbr=on
lbl32 = Number of tracks
row32 = 1
lbl33 = Route Availability
row33 = 6
lbl34 = Freight gauge
row34 = W6A|
hdr4 = History|
lbl41 = Opened
row41 = 1860 - 1862
lbl42 = Built by
row42 = London & South Western Ry
lbl43 = Subsequent owners
row43 = Southern Railway
British Railways

The Avocet Line is the railway line from Exeter to Exmouth, England. It was originally built by the London and South Western 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 live in the estuary.

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.

ervices

For many years the passenger services on the line have been provided by Wessex Trains, and since 2006 by First Great Western, using Class 150 or Class 153 diesel multiple units either singly or in multiple. However, from December 2007 First Great Western introduced Class 142 "Pacers" to release other DMUs for refurbishment.

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.

Passenger volume

The busiest station on the branch is Exmouth, which is the fifth busiest in Devon. The number of passengers arriving and departing this station has been in decline, while the numbers using Digby & Sowton and Topsham are increasing considerably. Comparing the year from April 2006 to that which started in April 2002, passenger numbers at these stations have increased by 68% and 48% respectively. [cite web|title =Station Usage|work =Rail Statistics|publisher =Office of Rail Regulation| url=http://www.rail-reg.gov.uk/server/show/nav.1529|accessdate = 2008-06-30] The statistics cover twelve month periods that start in April.

References