King's Nympton railway station

King's Nympton
Location
Place	Chulmleigh
Local authority	North Devon
Coordinates	50°56′10″N 3°54′19″W / 50.93600°N 3.90535°WCoordinates: 50°56′10″N 3°54′19″W / 50.93600°N 3.90535°W
Grid reference	SS662169
Operations
Station code	KGN
Managed by	Great Western Railway
Number of platforms	1
DfT category	F2
Live arrivals/departures, station information and onward connections from National Rail Enquiries
Annual rail passenger usage*
2010/11	2,578
2011/12	3,006
2012/13	4,482
2013/14	3,748
2014/15	3,422
History
Original company	North Devon Railway
Pre-grouping	London and South Western Railway
Post-grouping	Southern Railway
Opened	1854
National Rail – UK railway stations
* Annual estimated passenger usage based on sales of tickets in stated financial year(s) which end or originate at King's Nympton from Office of Rail and Road statistics. Methodology may vary year on year.
UK Railways portal

King's Nympton railway station is a small station on the Tarka Line 25.25 miles (41 km) north west of Exeter St David's station on the way to Barnstaple. It serves a number of rural villages, including King's Nympton, but is located in the civil parish of Chulmleigh.

History

The station was opened as South Molton Road by the North Devon Railway on 1 August 1854.^[1] Three years after nationalisation, British Railways renamed it "King's Nympton" in 1951 to avoid confusion with South Molton railway station, which was much nearer South Molton on the ex-Great Western Railway route from Taunton to Barnstaple route, which is now closed.

Until summer 1970 there was a 16 lever LSWR signalbox, similar in design to Crediton SB, on the down platform (platform now not in use). There were three sidings, two accessed from the down loop, and one from the up loop, and a one wagon bay off one of the sidings on the up side. On closure of the SB one siding, accessed via a groundframe, was retained for a number of years, handling fertiliser traffic.

Services

Six trains in each direction, Seven on Fridays northbound and four on Sundays on the Barnstaple to Exmouth service are scheduled to stop at King's Nympton on request – this means that passengers alighting here must tell the conductor that they wish to do so, and those waiting to join must signal clearly to the driver as the train approaches. Trains connect with main line services at Exeter St Davids.

Community railway

The railway between Exeter and Barnstaple is designated as a community railway and is supported by marketing provided by the Devon and Cornwall Rail Partnership. The line is promoted under the "Tarka Line" name.

References

1. Nicholas, John (1992). The North Devon Line. Sparkford: Oxford Publishing Company. ISBN 0-86093-461-6.