Tony Fyson, chairman, Dartmouth and Kingswear Society, writes:

It is now 50 years since the Beeching Report heralded the axing of many rail stations and lines and more than 40 years since the last train from London Paddington pulled into Kingswear station, allowing many of the disembarking passengers to take the ferry for the final leg of their journey to Dartmouth.

The Dartmouth and Kingswear Society has resolved to explore the possibility of re-establishing this much-missed rail service in some form. We believe that there is a growing need for the link to be restored for the benefit of both residents and visitors.

Many residents of the Dartmouth area connect with the rail network at Totnes station. This involves long and time-consuming road journeys, which put undesirable pressure on the environment and on the roads.

If, as has been rumoured, the rail companies will in future favour provision of this 'railhead' service at Newton Abbot rather than at Totnes, the inconvenience to residents and businesses on the west bank of the Dart will be even greater.

In the case of visitors, it is clear that the pattern of UK holidaymaking is changing, with more weekend and short 'second holiday' breaks being taken.

Improved rail access to Dartmouth and Kingswear would decrease the need for arduous car journeys to get here and encourage people on shorter breaks to come car-free, which would ease pressure on local roads and car-parks.

Running a connecting branch line service is not the same as extending the mainline that currently ends at Paignton.

The restoration of a direct London connection would be an ideal goal, but one option successfully achieved elsewhere has seen the integration of steam company operations – often using small diesel units– back into the national network.

So we have made informal contact with the Dartmouth Steam Railway and River Boat Company. We have learnt that the company has explored the feasibility of a service between Kingswear and Newton Abbot in the past and that 'it may well be time to put the matter back on the agenda'.

Clearly any proposal, whether for a main or branchline service, would have to be a viable financial proposition, and presumably involve subsidy of some sort.

Preliminary investigations are needed to find out from such sources as Network Rail, First Great Western, Cross Country Trains and the relevant local authorities whether they have current information about potential demand and the costs of meeting it.

The soceity is under no illusion about its need for expert help in the difficult task of identifying a workable solution.

The society is in the process of forming a small working group to study the options and feasibility of turning the idea into a realistic proposal and would be pleased to hear from anyone with expertise or experience to offer in this cause.

I can be contacted by email at [email protected]">[email protected].