Cranbrook railway station (Devon)

Cranbrook railway station serves the new town of Cranbrook near Exeter in Devon, England.^[2] The station is on the West of England Main Line between Whimple and Pinhoe stations, 166 miles 15 chains (267.5 km) down the line from London Waterloo.^[3] It is the newest station on the line, having opened in December 2015. Despite being the closest station to Exeter Airport (2.2 miles away), there is not yet a public transport link between the two,^[4][5][6] but in 2015 a direct bus route was expected to be introduced after the station's completion,^[7] to help improve the town's poor level of bus service.^{[8][needs update]}

Cranbrook
General information
Location	Cranbrook, Devon, East Devon England
Coordinates	50.7501°N 3.4206°W / 50.7501; -3.4206
Managed by	South Western Railway
Platforms	1
Other information
Station code	CBK
Key dates
13 December 2015	Opened[1]
Passengers
2019/20	105,400
2020/21	29,804
2021/22	95,524
2022/23	103,238
2023/24	114,574
Notes Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road

Construction

The station was originally expected to open in 2013,^[2] and the 2014 timetables included an additional two minutes for trains passing the station.^[9] However, detailed design of the station began only in summer 2014, and construction started that autumn with opening initially due in spring 2015,^[10] but problems with a sewer and railway signalling postponed the opening for a then unknown duration.^[11] In August 2015, the opening was announced for October.^[12] By October 2015, it transpired that the station would not open until 13 December 2015.^[13][14][15] The station cost £5m to build.^[16]

Facilities

The station's single platform has a usable length of 150 metres (490 ft)^[17] to accommodate the six-car trains (paired three-car Class 159 units) that operate on the route.^[18] There is a car park with 150 spaces.^[18] The station and its services are operated by South Western Railway.^[16] The station is unmanned; however, there is a ticket machine so tickets must be purchased before travel.

Services

Off-peak, all services at Cranbrook are operated by South Western Railway using Class 158 and 159 DMUs.^{[citation needed]}

The typical off-peak service in trains per hour is:^[19]

• 1 tph to London Waterloo via Salisbury
• 1 tph to Exeter St Davids

The station is also served by a single weekday peak hour service from Barnstaple to Axminster which is operated by Great Western Railway.^[20]

Preceding station	National Rail			Following station
Feniton or Whimple		South Western Railway West of England Main Line		Pinhoe
Feniton		Great Western Railway West of England Main Line Limited Service