Progress is speeding ahead with the new Okehampton railway station, with the revealing of its name on the site where it will be built on the outskirts of the town.

Representatives from Great Western Railway; Network Rail; Devon County Council and West Devon Borough Council, along with Central Devon MP Mel Stride, met at the site to unveil its name, Okehampton Interchange, on Friday (May 11).  

Doing the unveiling, Councillor Andrea Davis, Devon County Council Cabinet Member for Climate Change, Environment and Transport, said: “The popularity of the Dartmoor Line has been phenomenal since it reopened and the Okehampton Interchange will broaden its appeal further still, opening up rail access to wider areas of West Devon, Dartmoor and North Cornwall.

“The convenient location of Okehampton Interchange will encourage even more people to take up sustainable travel and the name of the station reflects the integration of rail, bus, cycling and walking links to the station.”

Mel Stride, MP for Central Devon, said that the naming of the station was “the first step for a project that will benefit thousands of local people in Okehampton and surrounding communities”.

The new station – originally to be called Okehampton Parkway – is being paid for with more than £13 million from the Government’s Levelling Up Fund.

Bogdan Lupu, Network Rail industry programme director, said: “We’re looking forward to building another new station for the South West. Reopening the Dartmoor Line was a fantastic achievement and Okehampton Interchange will connect even more people to the railway.”