Meldon Viaduct railway station

Meldon Quarry
Meldon Quarry
Station on heritage railway
	The cycle track over the viaduct and station site
General information
Location	Meldon, West Devon ; England
Coordinates	50°42′53″N4°01′55″W / 50.7148°N 4.0320°W
Grid reference	SX566926
Managed by	Dartmoor Railway
Platforms	1
Key dates
1890	Opened
1968	Closed by British Rail
2000	New station opened by the Dartmoor Railway
2008	Dartmoor Railway services temporarily withdrawn during change of ownership
2009	Dartmoor Railway services reintroduced
29 September 2019	last train ran

Last updated June 25, 2024

Meldon Viaduct railway station was a railway station at Meldon in Devon. It was renamed in 2015 from Meldon Quarry railway station.^[3]

History

The station was originally constructed circa 1890 as Meldon Quarry Halt by the London and South Western Railway. This station had no public access and merely functioned as a staff halt for quarry workers, their families and other railway staff working at Meldon Quarry. The quarry originally had no metalled road access and some quarry workers and their families lived in cottages situated near the quarry. They used the halt for access to Okehampton. The halt was not shown in the public railway timetable and local passenger services would only call by special arrangement. A workmen's service from Okehampton also operated using a passenger coach attached to one of the ballast trains. The platforms of the halt were constructed using standard components manufactured at the Railway's own Concrete Works at Exmouth Junction. The platforms were very narrow and short, about the length of a single passenger coach. They were situated at the immediate east end of Meldon Viaduct, between the viaduct and Meldon Quarry signal box.^[4]

The Beeching Report in 1963 recommended that the Exeter to Plymouth Line be cut back to Okehampton; and when services ceased between there and Bere Alston in 1968, the Halt became disused. Some time later both platforms were demolished during modifications to the rail layout and access at the western end of Meldon Quarry.

Bow, North Tawton, Sampford Courtenay and Okehampton lost their passenger services from 1972. But freight traffic continued on the line thanks to the activities of the British Rail ballast quarry at Meldon, three miles from Okehampton, which had an output of 300,000 tons per year. The quarry is now owned by Aggregate Industries. The quarry is currently out of use and 'mothballed'.

Reopening

A new station at Meldon Quarry was opened during 2000 by Dartmoor Railway to act as the terminus of a passenger service from Okehampton. It has a single platform adjacent to the former up line but situated slightly nearer to Okehampton than the former Staff Halt. It is an entirely new construction unrelated to the previous Halt. The station was further improved in 2002 with the installation of concrete platform walling and a wooden platform shelter in BR Southern Region style and colour scheme. In 2015 the station was renamed Meldon Viaduct.^[5] It is the current western terminus of Dartmoor Railway heritage passenger services to Okehampton and Sampford Courtenay. The station has no motor vehicle access but does have excellent pedestrian and cycle access via The Granite Way Cycleway, part of Devon Coast to Coast Cycle Route,^[6] and has links to Dartmoor via the local footpath network. From 2010 to 2013 there was a buffet situated near the station in a former SR electric multiple unit buffet car.^[7] The car overlooked Meldon Viaduct and the surrounding valleys.^{[ citation needed ]}

British American Railway Services Ltd, a new company created by Iowa Pacific Holdings of Chicago, became the new owner of the Dartmoor Railway on 4 September 2008. The company will develop freight, passenger and tourist services on the railway.^[8] Train services were suspended after the last train on 29 September 2019.

The station was last open to passenger services at the end of September 2019. Dartmoor Railway CIC went into administration in February 2020 and has now been wound up. The line was purchased by Network Rail from Aggregate Industries in June 2021 and regular services resumed in November 2021 between Exeter and Okehampton. The line beyond Okehampton to Meldon is currently out of use with Meldon Viaduct station now being owned by Network Rail. Although out of use it remains the only railway station with a connection to the national network situated within Dartmoor National Park.

Preceding station	Heritage railways			Following station
Okehampton		Dartmoor Railway		Terminus

Related Research Articles

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Meldon, Devon</span> Hamlet in Devon, England

Meldon is a hamlet in West Devon, on the edge of Dartmoor in Devon, England. It is 4 km south-west of Okehampton. Its main features are the Meldon Quarry and Meldon Reservoir and the nearby Meldon Viaduct.

The Okehampton–Bude line was a railway line built to serve Holsworthy in Devon, and Bude on the Cornish coast near the Devon border in England. The line branched from the main line at Meldon Junction to the west of Okehampton on the northern edge of Dartmoor. The line opened in 1879 to Holsworthy and in 1898 to Bude. It is now closed.

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Meldon Quarry is a granite quarry in Devon, England. It is at the northern edge of Dartmoor, about 2 miles SW of Okehampton. It was developed from 1897 to supply track ballast and other stone products for the London and South Western Railway (LSWR). It was privatised in 1994.

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Meldon Viaduct is a disused railway viaduct crossing the West Okement River at Meldon, 2.5 miles (4.0 km) south-west of Okehampton, on the edge of Dartmoor in Devon, South West England. This truss bridge was constructed from wrought iron, instead of stone or brick arches. It opened in 1874 for a single track; in 1879 its width was doubled for a second track. Although regular services were withdrawn in 1968, the bridge was used for shunting by a local quarry. In the 1990s the remaining single track was removed.

Okehampton Interchange is a proposed railway station in Okehampton on the Dartmoor Line. The station would be part of the Devon Metro and has been described as a priority station. The station is to be sited off Exeter Road, by the Business Park and close to the junction with the A30, in the Stockley Hamlet area of Okehampton. It will also serve 900 new homes to be built nearby.

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References

↑ Railway Passenger Stations by M.Quick page 310
↑ Private and Untimetabled Railway Stations by G.Croughton
↑ "News Section - Dartmoor Railway Association, Okehampton, Devon".
↑ Nicholas, John & Reeve, George (2001) The Okehampton Line. Clophill: Irwell Press ISBN 1-903266-13-0
↑ "News Section - Dartmoor Railway Association, Okehampton, Devon".
↑ "The Granite Way - Cycle Route on Dartmoor - Easy Cycle on Dartmoor - Cycling in Devon".
↑ "Meldon Buffet: Closure of Meldon Buffet". Archived from the original on 20 April 2013. Retrieved 30 June 2015.
↑ Heritage Railway, Pub. Heritage Railway Magazine. Issue 116, 2 October 2008 – 29 October 2008. P. 18.

External links

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[1] Railway Passenger Stations by M.Quick page 310

[2] Private and Untimetabled Railway Stations by G.Croughton

[3] "News Section - Dartmoor Railway Association, Okehampton, Devon".

[4] Nicholas, John & Reeve, George (2001) The Okehampton Line. Clophill: Irwell Press ISBN 1-903266-13-0

[5] "News Section - Dartmoor Railway Association, Okehampton, Devon".

[6] "The Granite Way - Cycle Route on Dartmoor - Easy Cycle on Dartmoor - Cycling in Devon".

[7] "Meldon Buffet: Closure of Meldon Buffet". Archived from the original on 20 April 2013. Retrieved 30 June 2015.

[Heritage-8] Heritage Railway, Pub. Heritage Railway Magazine. Issue 116, 2 October 2008 – 29 October 2008. P. 18.

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