Plymouth to Yealmpton Branch

The rival London and South Western Railway (LSWR) had long had ambitions to reach the city, and its trains first entered Plymouth in 1876.

However this was not entirely satisfactory, as the trains had to run over the South Devon Railway's Tavistock line for the final approach to Plymouth, and work started on an independent line in 1887, through the medium of a friendly company, the Plymouth, Devonport and South Western Junction Railway.

The Associated Companies had by this time amalgamated and become the Great Western Railway (GWR), and these competing developments were alarming to it.

[4] The line was inspected by Lieutenant Colonel Sir Horatio Arthur Yorke, Chief Inspector of Railways, Board of Trade who reported that everything was satisfactory on 7 December 1897[5] Passenger trains to Yealmpton from Plymouth Millbay turned at Lipson Junction to Mount Gould Junction, diverging there to Cattewater Junction, where the trains joined the LSWR (nominally P&DR) Turnchapel Branch to cross the Laira by Laira Bridge.

At Plymstock the Yealmpton branch diverged east from the Turnchapel line, the passenger station being in the fork of the junction.

In 1898 the working timetable showed four return passenger trains on the branch, the first into Plymouth arriving at Millbay at 08:35.

The first GWR-operated motor bus service in the area was instituted from Yealmpton to Modbury, the originally projected terminus, from 2 May 1904.

The halt opened on 2 October 1905, and the line here was double track so there were two platforms; it was described by the Inspecting Officer as being "a new stopping place for motor cars" (i.e. the railmotors).

However, there were problems with congestion at that station, and from 3 November 1941 the service was transferred to operate from the LSWR (by now the Southern Railway) Plymouth Friary terminus.

[6] The passenger services ceased on 6 October 1947,[12] from which date goods trains only ran on the line; it closed completely on 29 February 1960.