First Great Western will be running additional trains to provide a half-hourly service each Sunday from November 18th to December 23rd, between 10am and 6pm, instead of the usual hourly Sunday service. The additional services are already on national and FGW websites. Departure times of all Sunday trains are displayed on the ALRUG notice board in the station shelter and a leaflet will soon be available. The full timetable will be on an FGW poster.
ALRUG (the Avocet Line Rail Users Group) has been campaigning for a half-hourly service on Sundays and these extra trains are seen as a pilot to test the demand for such a service year round. This pilot is an early benefit of achieving Community Rail status for the line and the funding that goes with that. Devon County Council are also supporting the service. ALRUG will be conducting passenger counts during the pilot to measure its use.
Tony Day
