THE local community in Lapford and its surrounding villages in Mid Devon are delighted that Great Western Railway is now stopping more trains at its village railway station.

Services were cut nearly 20 years ago by a previous rail operator when demand was not sufficient to justify stopping so many trains.

Since then, just two trains in the morning and two in the evening provided a token service but, unsurprisingly, any travellers unable to plan their journeys around these restricted options would tend to drive to other nearby stations or, more often, ignore the train and drive all the way to their destination.

Lapford is the largest village community along the rail route from Exeter to Barnstaple with a community of more than 1,000 people living within walking distance of the station.

Lack of parking proved not to be a valid reason for limiting services.

After three years of campaigning by the village Parish Council, the new partial restoration of services, which began on Monday, July 6, enables this community, once again, to access Exeter, Barnstaple and beyond for work, shopping or leisure, while also enabling tourists to access this historic village and the surrounding peaceful countryside, away from the normally crowded coastal areas of Devon, Dartmoor and Exmoor.