| Overview | |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | Plymouth |
| Locale | England |
| Dates of operation | 1846–1876 |
| Successor | Great Western Railway |
| Technical | |
| Track gauge | 7 ft 1⁄4 in (2,140 mm) |
| Length | 52.85 mi (85.05 km) excluding branches |
The South Devon Railway Company built and operated the railway from Exeter to Plymouth and Torquay in Devon, England. It was a 7 ft 1⁄4 in (2,140 mm) broad gauge railway built by Isambard Kingdom Brunel.
The line had to traverse difficult hilly terrain, and the company adopted the atmospheric system in which trains were drawn by a piston in a tube laid between the rails, a vacuum being created by stationary engines. The revolutionary system proved to have insuperable technical difficulties and was abandoned. The line continued as a conventional locomotive railway. The company promoted a number of branches, through the medium of nominally independent companies.
Its original main line between Exeter and Plymouth remains in use today as an important part of the main line between London and Plymouth.