The main line running through the southern part of Devon included what is possibly the best scenic railway journey in the country as the line travels between Exeter and Newton Abbot along the sea wall between Dawlish Warren and Teignmouth.
Beyond Teigmouth the line follows the Teign estuary to Newton Abbot. On leaving Newton Abbot the line enters the Southhams, twisting and turning its way through the hilly South Devon countryside and at times hugging the edge of Dartmoor passing through the stations at Totnes and Ivybridge on the way to Plymouth.
The line first opened in the late 1840's having been designed by I K Brunel. It was intended that the line was to be operated by atmospheric pressure, in theory a good idea but in practice beset by problems. The atmospheric trains never reached Totnes but the engine house for them was built and part survives in the old dairy buildings beside the current station. Atmospheric trains would have been much lighter than their steam counterparts so gradients were less critical, but once the atmospheric system was abandoned the steam trains had to contend with the fearsome gradients.
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| Parsons Tunnel Photo by Geof Sheppard(www.creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/)via Wikimedia Commons |
The line first opened in the late 1840's having been designed by I K Brunel. It was intended that the line was to be operated by atmospheric pressure, in theory a good idea but in practice beset by problems. The atmospheric trains never reached Totnes but the engine house for them was built and part survives in the old dairy buildings beside the current station. Atmospheric trains would have been much lighter than their steam counterparts so gradients were less critical, but once the atmospheric system was abandoned the steam trains had to contend with the fearsome gradients.
More about South Brent station today