Southern Railway routes west of Salisbury
Encyclopedia
This article describes the history and operation of the railway routes west of Salisbury
that ultimately became part of the Southern Railway
in the United Kingdom. Salisbury forms a natural boundary between the Southern Railway core routes in the counties surrounding London, and the long route connecting with the Devon
and Cornwall
lines.
The Southern Railway started railway operation on 1 January 1923 as part of the grouping
of railways in Britain, forced by Act of Parliament. There were three major constituent companies, of which the London and South Western Railway
(L&SWR) operated services from Waterloo station
in London, to Devon and Cornwall. The L&SWR had constructed a good network of routes and the Southern Railway did not much extend the route mileage, seeing its task as consolidating the services offered and enhancing their appeal to the public.
The Southern Railway, and the L&SWR before it, engaged in bitter competition with the Great Western Railway
(GWR) for traffic from London to Devon and Cornwall. The L&SWR routes were generally more difficult operationally and served somewhat less important centres of manufacturing and (later) seaside recreation. The GWR also had the advantage of an easier connection with the Midlands and the North through Bristol
.
The Somerset & Dorset Joint Railway, running from Bournemouth
to Bath, and forming an important communications link with the Midlands, had been jointly owned by the L&SWR and the Midland Railway
; its ownership was, from 1923, jointly between the Southern Railway and the new London, Midland and Scottish Railway
(LMS).
Some minor independent railways also formed constituents of the new Southern Railway.
westward through Dorset
and Devon with many gradients of up to 1 in 80 (1.25%). Never running close to the coast, it supported several short branch lines to coastal resorts and to important towns adjacent to itselves route. At Templecombe
it, connected with the Somerset & Dorset Joint Railway.
At Exeter the main line turned north and skirted the northern margin of Dartmoor
, before turning south to reach the important city of Plymouth
. This main line supported several secondary routes, serving North Devon and North Cornwall coastal towns, from Ilfracombe
, Barnstaple
and Bideford
, to Bude
and to Padstow
.
; over a long period this competition is characterised as the Gauge War, because the GWR and its allies had adopted Brunel's broad gauge
, and the gauge of an independently promoted railway implied its friendship with other railways of the same gauge.
The L&SWR looked towards Exeter as an important destination, and several attempts were made to get parliamentary approval for a line to reach the city. The independent Southampton & Dorchester Railway was proposed for extension to Exeter (and Dorchester station was aligned appropriately) but first attempts were rejected.
The L&SWR company had given an undertaking (to secure passage of the act for another line) to complete a direct railway from Basingstoke to Salisbury, and it grudgingly complied, opening, also to Milford, on 1 May 1857.
However the first step westwards was built by the Salisbury and Yeovil Railway
which got an Act of Parliament on 7 August 1854, and it opened its first section from Salisbury to Gillingham on 2 May 1859. The Salisbury station was a new station at Fisherton Street, immediately south of the GWR station that had opened on 20 June 1856, serving its line from Westbury. On the same day the L&SWR opened connecting lines from the Bishopstoke and Basingstoke lines to Fisherton Street, and closed the Milford station to passengers.
The Salisbury & Yeovil company extended its line to Sherborne on 7 May 1860 and from there to Yeovil on 1 June 1860.
With the approval of the Salisbury & Yeovil railway, the course of the L&SWR route to Exeter was clear, and they now easily got an Act for their line on 21 July 1856, opening throughout from Yeovil to Exeter Queen Street on 19 July 1860. The Bristol & Exeter Railway, a broad gauge company, had reached Exeter 16 years previously.
The Bideford Extension Railway built a line from Fremington to Bideford, opened in 1855, worked by the L&SWR on the broad gauge with B&E trains until 1863.
The L&SWR extended the Bideford line to Torrington, after local pressure to fulfill an earlier undertaking, opening in 1872.
These developments are more fully described in the article North Devon Railway
.
Extension of the line from Barnstaple to Ilfracombe
took place in 1874. The route was very difficult and involved steep gradients and sharp curves.
The L&SWR enhanced its own goods and dock facilities at Plymouth, and later built its own line from Lydford to Devonport, now entering the former terminus station from the west, so that L&SWR trains from Exeter now ran from west to east, calling at Devonport and North Road, and then terminating at a new passenger terminal at Friary, to the east of Plymouth city centre.
These developments are more fully described in the article Exeter to Plymouth railway of the LSWR
.
The Lydford line enabled the L&SWR to launch a railway to Holsworthy, and important market town, in 1879, extending that line to the Cornish harbour town of Bude in 1898. This route is described in the article Okehampton to Bude Line.
Even the Salisbury and Yeovil Railway
served Yeovil itself by a branch from Bradford Abbas, a fact which lost it much initial support in Yeovil when it became known at the promotion stage.
When the Yeovil branch opened, on the same day as the S&YR main line on 1 June 1860, the Yeovil station was not ready and the trains continued on the Bristol & Exeter line to Hendford, the B&ER station on the western limits of the town. The B&ER laid mixed gauge track for the purpose, having reached there in 1857 connecting with the GWR at Pen Mill. The magnificent Yeovil joint station opened on 1 June 1861, jointly operated by the B&ER, the GWR and the L&SWR, and the L&SWR trains ceased running through to Hendford.
Chard was served by a railway promoted by the Chard Railway company; when construction was partly complete the L&SWR purchased the railway on 1 January 1863 and the line opened on 8 May 1863, from Chard Road to Chard Town. When the Bristol & Exeter Railway reached Chard from Taunton in 1866, the L&SWR line was extended, by-passing the original station and running to a new Joint station, called New Chard or "Chard Joint", opened in 26 November 1866. The original station remained open, but was reduced to goods-only status in 1917.
Lyme Regis was the last of the intermediate branches to be built after several earlier schemes from 1864 failed; the Lyme Regis branch line ran from Axminster station with 1 in 40 gradients and sharp curves, opening on 24 August 1903. Constructed and worked by the Axminster & Lyme Regis Light Railway, it was absorbed by the L&SWR on 1 January 1907. Although a southwards branch, it ran from the up (north) side of Axminster station and crossed over the main line. There was a spur to the down sidings at Axminster station.
The Seaton branch was constructed by the Seaton and Beer Railway; it opened on 16 March 1868 from Colyton Junction
(later Seaton Junction) with intermediate stations at Colyton Town, Colyford and Seaton. The line was leased by the L&SWR from 1 January 1880 and absorbed by it on 1 January 1888.
The Sidmouth Railway
got its act of parliament on 29 June 1871 and opened its line on 6 July 1874 from Feniton, with intermediate stations at Tipton and Ottery St Mary. The Sidmouth station was somewhat short of the town itself. Feniton had been renamed Ottery Road in 1861, but was renamed Sidmouth Junction when the Sidmouth line opened. (After closure of the branch line it reverted to Feniton in 1971).
A light railway called the Budleigh Salterton Railway
got its act on 20 July 1894 and opened its line in 1897 from Tipton St Johns (the earlier Tipton station, renamed in 1881) to Salterton, with an intermediate station at Budleigh. In 1898 it renamed Salterton to be called Budleigh Salterton; Budleigh was renamed East Budleigh, and a new station was opened at Newton Poppleford.
The L&SWR already operated an Exmouth branch, and it filled in the gap by opening its Exmouth & Salterton Railway from Budleigh Salterton to Exmouth, with an intermediate station at Littleham
, on 1 June 1903.
Much earlier, the Exeter & Exmouth Railway
had opened its line from the L&SWR at Exmouth Junction on 1 May 1861; it was woprked from the outset by the L&SWR.
However the capital expenditure in building the Bath extension ruined the S&DR and it leased its line to the L&SWR and Midland Railway companies in 1876; they operated the line as the Somerset & Dorset Joint Railway, with the Midland company providing the engine power and rolling stock, and the L&SWR providing infrastructure and operations staff.
The Joint line connected with other L&SWR routes at Poole and Bournemouth, and that was the most important passenger flow, with a lower usage of the Templecombe connection with the Salisbury - Exeter line. However freight traffic interchange at Templecombe was considerable.
Salisbury
Salisbury is a cathedral city in Wiltshire, England and the only city in the county. It is the second largest settlement in the county...
that ultimately became part of the Southern Railway
Southern Railway (Great Britain)
The Southern Railway was a British railway company established in the 1923 Grouping. It linked London with the Channel ports, South West England, South coast resorts and Kent...
in the United Kingdom. Salisbury forms a natural boundary between the Southern Railway core routes in the counties surrounding London, and the long route connecting with the Devon
Devon
Devon is a large county in southwestern England. The county is sometimes referred to as Devonshire, although the term is rarely used inside the county itself as the county has never been officially "shired", it often indicates a traditional or historical context.The county shares borders with...
and Cornwall
Cornwall
Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...
lines.
Network
Railways Act 1921
The Railways Act 1921, also known as the Grouping Act, was an enactment by the British government of David Lloyd George intended to stem the losses being made by many of the country's 120 railway companies, move the railways away from internal competition, and to retain some of the benefits which...
of railways in Britain, forced by Act of Parliament. There were three major constituent companies, of which the London and South Western Railway
London and South Western Railway
The London and South Western Railway was a railway company in England from 1838 to 1922. Its network extended from London to Plymouth via Salisbury and Exeter, with branches to Ilfracombe and Padstow and via Southampton to Bournemouth and Weymouth. It also had many routes connecting towns in...
(L&SWR) operated services from Waterloo station
Waterloo station
Waterloo station, also known as London Waterloo, is a central London railway terminus and London Underground complex. The station is owned and operated by Network Rail and is close to the South Bank of the River Thames, and in Travelcard Zone 1....
in London, to Devon and Cornwall. The L&SWR had constructed a good network of routes and the Southern Railway did not much extend the route mileage, seeing its task as consolidating the services offered and enhancing their appeal to the public.
The Southern Railway, and the L&SWR before it, engaged in bitter competition with the Great Western Railway
Great Western Railway
The Great Western Railway was a British railway company that linked London with the south-west and west of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament in 1835 and ran its first trains in 1838...
(GWR) for traffic from London to Devon and Cornwall. The L&SWR routes were generally more difficult operationally and served somewhat less important centres of manufacturing and (later) seaside recreation. The GWR also had the advantage of an easier connection with the Midlands and the North through Bristol
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
.
The Somerset & Dorset Joint Railway, running from Bournemouth
Bournemouth
Bournemouth is a large coastal resort town in the ceremonial county of Dorset, England. According to the 2001 Census the town has a population of 163,444, making it the largest settlement in Dorset. It is also the largest settlement between Southampton and Plymouth...
to Bath, and forming an important communications link with the Midlands, had been jointly owned by the L&SWR and the Midland Railway
Midland Railway
The Midland Railway was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1844 to 1922, when it became part of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway....
; its ownership was, from 1923, jointly between the Southern Railway and the new London, Midland and Scottish Railway
London, Midland and Scottish Railway
The London Midland and Scottish Railway was a British railway company. It was formed on 1 January 1923 under the Railways Act of 1921, which required the grouping of over 120 separate railway companies into just four...
(LMS).
Some minor independent railways also formed constituents of the new Southern Railway.
Main routes
From Salisbury the main line followed a route to Exeter Central stationExeter Central railway station
Exeter Central railway station is the most centrally located of the railway stations in Exeter, Devon, England. It is smaller than St Davids which is on the west side of the city but it is served by trains on the London Waterloo to Exeter main line, and is also by local services to , and . From...
westward through Dorset
Dorset
Dorset , is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The county town is Dorchester which is situated in the south. The Hampshire towns of Bournemouth and Christchurch joined the county with the reorganisation of local government in 1974...
and Devon with many gradients of up to 1 in 80 (1.25%). Never running close to the coast, it supported several short branch lines to coastal resorts and to important towns adjacent to itselves route. At Templecombe
Templecombe
Templecombe is a village in Somerset, England, situated on the A357 road five miles south of Wincanton, twelve miles east of Yeovil, and 30 miles west of Salisbury. The village has a population of 1,506...
it, connected with the Somerset & Dorset Joint Railway.
At Exeter the main line turned north and skirted the northern margin of Dartmoor
Dartmoor
Dartmoor is an area of moorland in south Devon, England. Protected by National Park status, it covers .The granite upland dates from the Carboniferous period of geological history. The moorland is capped with many exposed granite hilltops known as tors, providing habitats for Dartmoor wildlife. The...
, before turning south to reach the important city of Plymouth
Plymouth
Plymouth is a city and unitary authority area on the coast of Devon, England, about south-west of London. It is built between the mouths of the rivers Plym to the east and Tamar to the west, where they join Plymouth Sound...
. This main line supported several secondary routes, serving North Devon and North Cornwall coastal towns, from Ilfracombe
Ilfracombe
Ilfracombe is a seaside resort and civil parish on the North Devon coast, England with a small harbour, surrounded by cliffs.The parish stretches along the coast from 'The Coastguard Cottages' in Hele Bay toward the east and 4 miles along The Torrs to Lee Bay toward the west...
, Barnstaple
Barnstaple
Barnstaple is a town and civil parish in the local government district of North Devon in the county of Devon, England, UK. It lies west southwest of Bristol, north of Plymouth and northwest of the county town of Exeter. The old spelling Barnstable is now obsolete.It is the main town of the...
and Bideford
Bideford
Bideford is a small port town on the estuary of the River Torridge in north Devon, south-west England. It is also the main town of the Torridge local government district.-History:...
, to Bude
Bude
Bude is a small seaside resort town in North Cornwall, England, at the mouth of the River Neet . It lies just south of Flexbury, north of Widemouth Bay and west of Stratton and is located along the A3073 road off the A39. Bude is twinned with Ergué-Gabéric in Brittany, France...
and to Padstow
Padstow
Padstow is a town, civil parish and fishing port on the north coast of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The town is situated on the west bank of the River Camel estuary approximately five miles northwest of Wadebridge, ten miles northwest of Bodmin and ten miles northeast of Newquay...
.
Salisbury to Exeter
The L&SWR had reached Salisbury in 1847 with a line from Bishopstoke (now known as Eastleigh) to a station at Milford, at the south-eastern edge of the city. The L&SWR wanted to open up territory to the west of Salisbury as part of the rush to secure areas for itself, in competition with the Great Western RailwayGreat Western Railway
The Great Western Railway was a British railway company that linked London with the south-west and west of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament in 1835 and ran its first trains in 1838...
; over a long period this competition is characterised as the Gauge War, because the GWR and its allies had adopted Brunel's broad gauge
Broad gauge
Broad-gauge railways use a track gauge greater than the standard gauge of .- List :For list see: List of broad gauges, by gauge and country- History :...
, and the gauge of an independently promoted railway implied its friendship with other railways of the same gauge.
The L&SWR looked towards Exeter as an important destination, and several attempts were made to get parliamentary approval for a line to reach the city. The independent Southampton & Dorchester Railway was proposed for extension to Exeter (and Dorchester station was aligned appropriately) but first attempts were rejected.
The L&SWR company had given an undertaking (to secure passage of the act for another line) to complete a direct railway from Basingstoke to Salisbury, and it grudgingly complied, opening, also to Milford, on 1 May 1857.
However the first step westwards was built by the Salisbury and Yeovil Railway
Salisbury and Yeovil Railway
The Salisbury and Yeovil Railway linked Salisbury , Gillingham and Yeovil in England. Opened in stages in 1859 and 1860, it formed a bridge route between the main London and South Western Railway network and its lines in Devon and Cornwall. Its trains were operated by the LSWR and it was sold to...
which got an Act of Parliament on 7 August 1854, and it opened its first section from Salisbury to Gillingham on 2 May 1859. The Salisbury station was a new station at Fisherton Street, immediately south of the GWR station that had opened on 20 June 1856, serving its line from Westbury. On the same day the L&SWR opened connecting lines from the Bishopstoke and Basingstoke lines to Fisherton Street, and closed the Milford station to passengers.
The Salisbury & Yeovil company extended its line to Sherborne on 7 May 1860 and from there to Yeovil on 1 June 1860.
With the approval of the Salisbury & Yeovil railway, the course of the L&SWR route to Exeter was clear, and they now easily got an Act for their line on 21 July 1856, opening throughout from Yeovil to Exeter Queen Street on 19 July 1860. The Bristol & Exeter Railway, a broad gauge company, had reached Exeter 16 years previously.
Exeter and North Devon
Seeing a strategic advantage in developing territory in Devon, the L&SWR took a great interest in local railways being promoted between Exeter and North Devon. When the Taw Vale Extension Railway was promoted and obtained its Act of Parliament for construction in 1846, the L&SWR bought shares in the adjacent Exeter & Crediton railway, and in 1847 the L&SWR concluded a lease of the TVE which itself leased the E&CR. When the lines finally opened on 1 August 1854 the L&SWR had control of a railway from Exeter to Fremington, just beyond Barnstaple. However these had been required by the Board of Trade to be on the broad gauge, so for the time being the L&SWR had to arrange for the Bristol & Exeter Railway to work its trains for it. After the L&SWR reached Exeter, an arbitration award required the Bristol & Exeter to lay mixed gauge track from Exeter St Davids to Cowley Bridge Junction, and permitted the L&SWR to run standard gauge trains to Crediton from 1862 and throughout to Fremington from 1863.The Bideford Extension Railway built a line from Fremington to Bideford, opened in 1855, worked by the L&SWR on the broad gauge with B&E trains until 1863.
The L&SWR extended the Bideford line to Torrington, after local pressure to fulfill an earlier undertaking, opening in 1872.
These developments are more fully described in the article North Devon Railway
North Devon Railway
The North Devon Railway was a British railway company which operated a line from Cowley Bridge Junction, near Exeter, to Bideford in Devon, later becoming part of the London and South Western Railway's system...
.
Extension of the line from Barnstaple to Ilfracombe
Ilfracombe Branch Line
The Ilfracombe Branch of the London & South Western Railway , ran between Barnstaple and Ilfracombe in North Devon. The branch opened as a single-track line in 1874, but was sufficiently popular that it needed to be upgraded to double-track in 1889....
took place in 1874. The route was very difficult and involved steep gradients and sharp curves.
Into Cornwall and to Plymouth
Seeking further westward expansion, the L&SWR encouraged an independent company, the Devon and Cornwall Railway, to promote a line from Coleford Junction, north-west of Crediton, to Lydford round the northern edge of Dartmoor. At Lydford the line made a junction with the South Devon & Tavistock Railway, a broad gauge company that had reached there in 1865, and running powers were obtained to continue to Plymouth. The D&CR line was opened slowly in stages between 1865 and 1874, and the completion was accompanied by the opening of the L&SWR's own terminus station at Devonport; its trains ran through Plymouth from Tavistock Junction, making a Plymouth call at Mutley station and later North Road station, then continuing to the Devonport station.The L&SWR enhanced its own goods and dock facilities at Plymouth, and later built its own line from Lydford to Devonport, now entering the former terminus station from the west, so that L&SWR trains from Exeter now ran from west to east, calling at Devonport and North Road, and then terminating at a new passenger terminal at Friary, to the east of Plymouth city centre.
These developments are more fully described in the article Exeter to Plymouth railway of the LSWR
Exeter to Plymouth railway of the LSWR
The Exeter to Plymouth railway of the London and South Western Railway was the westernmost part of a route competing with that of the Great Western Railway and its 'associated companies' from London to Exeter and Plymouth in Devon, England...
.
The Lydford line enabled the L&SWR to launch a railway to Holsworthy, and important market town, in 1879, extending that line to the Cornish harbour town of Bude in 1898. This route is described in the article Okehampton to Bude Line.
Branch Lines between Salisbury and Exeter
The challenging terrain between Salisbury and Exeter made it difficult for the main line as constructed to serve several important towns near its path. This resulted in several important branch lines being constructed to serve them, in many cases promoted by local interests. Most of the branch lines made a junction with the main line at a place other than a town, reducing the commercial effectiveness of the route.Even the Salisbury and Yeovil Railway
Salisbury and Yeovil Railway
The Salisbury and Yeovil Railway linked Salisbury , Gillingham and Yeovil in England. Opened in stages in 1859 and 1860, it formed a bridge route between the main London and South Western Railway network and its lines in Devon and Cornwall. Its trains were operated by the LSWR and it was sold to...
served Yeovil itself by a branch from Bradford Abbas, a fact which lost it much initial support in Yeovil when it became known at the promotion stage.
When the Yeovil branch opened, on the same day as the S&YR main line on 1 June 1860, the Yeovil station was not ready and the trains continued on the Bristol & Exeter line to Hendford, the B&ER station on the western limits of the town. The B&ER laid mixed gauge track for the purpose, having reached there in 1857 connecting with the GWR at Pen Mill. The magnificent Yeovil joint station opened on 1 June 1861, jointly operated by the B&ER, the GWR and the L&SWR, and the L&SWR trains ceased running through to Hendford.
Chard was served by a railway promoted by the Chard Railway company; when construction was partly complete the L&SWR purchased the railway on 1 January 1863 and the line opened on 8 May 1863, from Chard Road to Chard Town. When the Bristol & Exeter Railway reached Chard from Taunton in 1866, the L&SWR line was extended, by-passing the original station and running to a new Joint station, called New Chard or "Chard Joint", opened in 26 November 1866. The original station remained open, but was reduced to goods-only status in 1917.
Lyme Regis was the last of the intermediate branches to be built after several earlier schemes from 1864 failed; the Lyme Regis branch line ran from Axminster station with 1 in 40 gradients and sharp curves, opening on 24 August 1903. Constructed and worked by the Axminster & Lyme Regis Light Railway, it was absorbed by the L&SWR on 1 January 1907. Although a southwards branch, it ran from the up (north) side of Axminster station and crossed over the main line. There was a spur to the down sidings at Axminster station.
The Seaton branch was constructed by the Seaton and Beer Railway; it opened on 16 March 1868 from Colyton Junction
Seaton Junction railway station
Seaton Junction is a closed railway station on the West of England Main Line from London Waterloo to Exeter. It was situated 3 miles west of Axminster and 7 miles east of Honiton.- History :...
(later Seaton Junction) with intermediate stations at Colyton Town, Colyford and Seaton. The line was leased by the L&SWR from 1 January 1880 and absorbed by it on 1 January 1888.
The Sidmouth Railway
Sidmouth Railway
The Sidmouth Railway was a double track branch railway line that ran from a junction on the West of England Main Line at Feniton railway station, then called Sidmouth Junction, to with two intermediate stations, , and .-History:...
got its act of parliament on 29 June 1871 and opened its line on 6 July 1874 from Feniton, with intermediate stations at Tipton and Ottery St Mary. The Sidmouth station was somewhat short of the town itself. Feniton had been renamed Ottery Road in 1861, but was renamed Sidmouth Junction when the Sidmouth line opened. (After closure of the branch line it reverted to Feniton in 1971).
A light railway called the Budleigh Salterton Railway
Budleigh Salterton Railway
The Budleigh Salterton Railway was a double track branch railway line that ran from a junction on the Sidmouth Railway at to via four intermediate stations, , , , and .-History:...
got its act on 20 July 1894 and opened its line in 1897 from Tipton St Johns (the earlier Tipton station, renamed in 1881) to Salterton, with an intermediate station at Budleigh. In 1898 it renamed Salterton to be called Budleigh Salterton; Budleigh was renamed East Budleigh, and a new station was opened at Newton Poppleford.
The L&SWR already operated an Exmouth branch, and it filled in the gap by opening its Exmouth & Salterton Railway from Budleigh Salterton to Exmouth, with an intermediate station at Littleham
Littleham, Exmouth
Littleham is an area of Exmouth in Devon, England. It was historically a village and civil parish, much older than Exmouth itself.The ecclesiastical parish is now known as Littleham-cum-Exmouth . The original parish church dates back to the 13th century and is dedicated to St Margaret and St...
, on 1 June 1903.
Much earlier, the Exeter & Exmouth Railway
Avocet Line
The Avocet Line is the railway line in England connecting Exeter with Exmouth. 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...
had opened its line from the L&SWR at Exmouth Junction on 1 May 1861; it was woprked from the outset by the L&SWR.
Independent railways
- Plymouth, Devonport and South Western Junction RailwayPlymouth, Devonport and South Western Junction RailwayThe Plymouth, Devonport and South Western Junction Railway in England was built by an independent company but operated by the London and South Western Railway as part of its main line to give it independent access to Plymouth. It ran from to Devonport Junction, just west of Plymouth North Road...
- Lynton and Barnstaple RailwayLynton and Barnstaple RailwayThe Lynton & Barnstaple Railway opened as an independent railway in May 1898. It was a single track narrow gauge railway slightly over long running through the rugged and picturesque area bordering Exmoor in North Devon, England. Although opened after the 1896 Light Railways Act came into force,...
- North Devon and Cornwall Junction Light Railway
The Somerset & Dorset Joint Railway
The Somerset & Dorset Joint Railway formed a most important connecting line for the L&SWR, intersecting at Templecombe. The line had originally been promoted by a local line, the Dorset Central Railway, which had made a connection with the L&SWR at Templecombe in 1862. At the same time, the line amalgamated with the Somerset Central Railway to form the Somerset & Dorset Railway, at this stage only aspiring to connect Poole with Highbridge and Burnham on the Bristol Channel. However the little company completed its extension to Bath in 1874, there connecting with the Midland railway, and instantly forming an important through route to the Midlands and the North, avoiding dependence on the Great Western Railway.However the capital expenditure in building the Bath extension ruined the S&DR and it leased its line to the L&SWR and Midland Railway companies in 1876; they operated the line as the Somerset & Dorset Joint Railway, with the Midland company providing the engine power and rolling stock, and the L&SWR providing infrastructure and operations staff.
The Joint line connected with other L&SWR routes at Poole and Bournemouth, and that was the most important passenger flow, with a lower usage of the Templecombe connection with the Salisbury - Exeter line. However freight traffic interchange at Templecombe was considerable.