Teaming up for progress on better railways

WORK is underway to modernise North Devon's railway services with the goal of two-services an hour and faster journeys on the Tarka Line.

- by LEWIS CLARKE [e-mail] @DevonLiveNews

At the second annual meeting of the North Devon Railway Development Alliance (NDRDA) planners from Network Rail outlined early stage work being carried out to make improvements.

Network Rail’s senior strategic planner Andrew Robinson said these could include reintroducing double tracking at the southern end of the route, establishing new passing loops at the northern end, addressing outdated level crossings, and modernising signalling systems.

He confirmed design teams are currently assessing feasible locations for passing loops and junctions, as well as potential risks associated with increased service frequency and speed.

“The aim is to enable a two trains per hour service and achieve journey times of under one hour,” said Mr Robinson. “We need to look at how we can operate the line more efficiently and provide the flexibility and resilience it will require to meet future service levels.”

He acknowledged that while some interventions would take time and substantial investment, others could be implemented to help in the interim. Among those backing the urgent need for improved transport links was Appledore shipyard.