Honiton railway station

Honiton railway station serves the town of Honiton in east Devon, England. It was opened by the London and South Western Railway (LSWR) in 1860 and is now operated by South Western Railway which provides services on the West of England Main Line. It is 154 miles 60 chains (249.0 km) down the line from London Waterloo.

Honiton
Honiton station in 2009
Location	Honiton, East Devon England
Coordinates	50.797°N 3.187°W
Grid reference	ST164003
Managed by	South Western Railway
Platforms	2
Other information
Station code	HON
Classification	DfT category D
History
Original company	London and South Western Railway
Post-grouping	Southern Railway
Key dates
1860	Opened
Passengers
2015/16	0.390 million
2016/17	0.390 million
2017/18	0.377 million
2018/19	0.359 million
Interchange	12,466
2019/20	0.331 million
Interchange	14,389
Notes
Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road

History

The station was opened by the LSWR on 19 July 1860, along with its Exeter Extension from Yeovil Junction to Exeter Queen Street. The station was designed by William Tite with the main building on the westbound platform, even though this is the side furthest from the town centre. The station was on an embankment on the west side of New Street and the goods yard with a small goods shed was on the south side beyond the station building. Further sidings were provided on the north side of the line opposite the main goods yard. Goods facilities were withdrawn on 8 May 1967.[1]

In August 2009, a new footbridge was erected at Honiton Railway Station replacing an older footbridge. The location of the footbridge moved towards the Exeter end of the station.[2]

It was announced in early December 2010 that Honiton Railway Station was to undergo a phase of several improvements. This phase of £1.4 million improvements set out to provide the station with a brighter enlarged booking hall, new toilets and changing facilities; and also a retail unit. In addition, both platforms were fitted with accessible ramps along with a new waiting shelter to make it easier for all passengers to use the station.[3]

The project, funded by South West Trains, Devon County Council, Network Rail and the National Station Improvement Programme has made the station more accessible. As part of South West Trains’ commitment to deliver greener travel, the station was also equipped with shelters, additional CCTV and 1000 new bicycle spaces.

Work on the improvement scheme started in early December 2010 and the completed refurbishment was officially unveiled on Thursday 23 June 2011.[4] To mark the completion, Andy Pitt, Managing Director for South West Trains along with Councillor Stuart Hughes from Devon County Council gathered at the station for a photo and unveiling.[5]

Roundball Halt

There was, for a few years, a second station in Honiton. It was opened in September 1906 about half a mile from the town station to allow soldiers to reach a rifle range at Roundball Hill, south west of the town centre. It was never advertised in timetables and was demolished early in 1921.[1]

Signalling

The 1957 signal box which has since been demolished.

A signal box was built in 1875 at the Exeter end of the station on the south side of the line. This was replaced by a new building on 16 June 1957 which was on the opposite side of the tracks. On 11 June 1967 the line from Chard Junction to Pinhoe was reduced to a single track[6] but a loop line was retained at Honiton to allow trains to pass midway on this 29 miles (47 km) section. The westbound platform was signalled to allow eastbound trains to use it when they are not crossing a train coming in the opposite direction. In December 2009 a new loop was installed at Axminster to break up the section towards Chard. One siding was retained to the west of the signal box, worked by a ground frame rather than from the signal box itself,[7] however this has now also been lifted.

Another signal box was provided at Honiton Incline. This was situated on the north side of the line beyond the 1,345-yard (1,230 m) Honiton Tunnel. The line climbs from Feniton towards Honiton at 1 in 100 (1%) and then continues up to the tunnel mouth a slightly steeper gradients, it then drops at 1 in 80 (1.25%) down to the former Seaton Junction.[6]

In 2012 signalling for the Salisbury-Exeter line transferred to the new signalling centre at Basingstoke. Signals previously controlled by Gillingham, Templecombe, Yeovil Junction and Honiton boxes all now have the prefix SE.

Description

A modern station building stands on the main platform which is on the southern side of the line. A footbridge to the west of this links the northern platform which has a small waiting shelter. The signal box is at the Exeter end of this platform and the main station car park is situated behind this, however the 1957 signal box closed and was knocked down in late spring of 2012. Honiton Railway Station has recently seen a refurbishment, providing a new booking hall, more CCTV, shelters and increased accessibility. Work was completed on Thursday 23 June 2011.[1][5]

Services

A South Western Railway Class 159 going to Exeter St Davids

South Western Railway operate hourly services between London Waterloo and Exeter St Davids.[8] One weekday afternoon stopping train from Exeter also terminates here before returning non-stop to Exeter Central and onwards to terminate at St Davids and on Saturdays one evening train from Waterloo also terminates here.

Incidents

On Sunday 4 October 2009 at 11.45pm, a man escaped injuries after he walked onto the railway line at Honiton Railway Station. Police stated that a train managed to stop without hitting the man. Shortly afterwards, the 33-year-old man was sent to hospital to take a mental health assessment.[9]

See also

• Southern Railway routes west of Salisbury

References

1. Oakley, Mike (2007). Devon Railway Stations. Wimborne: The Dovecote Press. ISBN 978-1-904349-55-6.
2. "New footbridge at Honiton Railway Station". Midweek Herald.
3. Bennett, Belinda. "More investment at Honiton Railway Station". Midweek Herald.
4. "Honition station repopens after refurbishment". Archived from the original on 19 March 2012.
5. Bennett, Belinda. "New look Honiton Railway Station". Midweek Herald.
6. Phillips, Derek; Pryer, George (1997). The Salisbury to Exeter Line. Sparkford: Oxford Publishing Company. ISBN 0-86093-525-6.
7. Jacobs, Gerald (2005). Railway Track Diagrams Book 3: Western. Bradford-on-Avon: Trackmaps. ISBN 0-9549866-1-X.
8. GB eNRT May 2016 Edition, Table 160
9. "Man walks onto railway line, Honiton". Midweek Herald.