Calls for future rail improvements as station marks 170 year history

A GROUP of campaigners gathered at Kings Nympton station to celebrate its 170-year history - and to demand more reliable and frequent train services on the busy Tarka Line.

- LEWIS CLARKE

The event marked the original name of the station - South Molton Road - but was just as much about the future as the past.

Rail campaigners joined local councillors and the area’s MP last month to call for improvements, arguing that current services fail to meet the needs of the rural communities the station serves.

Martin Pailthorpe, who leads the Friends of Kings Nympton Station, said the campaign had struck a chord with residents. “We picked up 200 members on Facebook saying we would like all trains to stop here on request,’ he said. “Not every train stops at Kings Nympton even when requested, and that's a huge problem for people in Kings Nympton, Burrington, Chittlehamholt and parts of Chulmleigh. You can’t reliably leave your car here and expect to get back to it.”

Mr Pailthorpe added that the limited service has a real-world impact on families and the environment, explaining he regularly drives his daughter to Eggesford to catch the train to college in Exeter. “That twice-a-week trip over the school year is the equivalent of me driving to John O’Groats,’ he said.