great western main line

The Great Western Main Line is a main line railway in the United Kingdom, corresponding to the principal routes of the pre-1948 Great Western Railway which were subsequently taken over by the Western Region of British Railways and are now operated by First Great Western. The original Great Western Main Line runs from London Paddington via Reading, Swindon, Bath, Bristol Temple Meads and Exeter to Plymouth. The route that diverges at Swindon to Bristol Parkway, the Severn Tunnel, Cardiff and Swansea is also part of the Great Western Main Line, as is the route that diverges at Reading to reach Exeter more directly via Newbury, Westbury and Castle Cary.

Routes in detail

London to Plymouth via Bristol

Direct line diverges to Taunton (see below)

Didcot Parkway

Line diverges to Oxford and Banbury

Swindon

Golden Valley Line diverges to Stroud, Gloucester and Cheltenham Spa

Wootton Bassett (closed)

South Wales Main Line diverges to Bristol Parkway and South Wales

Chippenham

Line diverges to Westbury

Bath Spa
Bristol Temple Meads
Weston-super-Mare (there is also an avoiding line around the town)
Burnham-on-Sea
Bridgwater
Taunton
Exeter St. Davids

West of England Main Line diverges to Yeovil, Salibury and London Waterloo
Avocet Line diverges to Exmouth
Tarka Line diverges to Barnstaple

Newton Abbot

Riviera Line diverges to Torquay and Paignton

Totnes

Connection with South Devon Railway (a heritage railway)

Plymouth

Reading to Taunton

Reading

Line diverges to Basingstoke

Newbury
Bedwyn
Pewsey
Westbury

Wessex Main Line diverges to Salisbury and Southampton (South) or Bath Spa and Bristol Temple Meads (North)
There is also a link to Chippenham via Trowbridge and Melksham

Frome

There is also an avoiding line around the town.

Castle Cary

Heart of Wessex Line diverges to Weymouth

Taunton

Line continues to Exeter and Plymouth (see above)

Most direct London-Plymouth trains use this route.

Cornish Main Line

Plymouth

Tamar Valley Line diverges to Gunnislake

Liskeard

Looe Valley Line diverges to Looe

Bodmin Parkway

Connection with Bodmin & Wenford Railway (a heritage railway)

Lostwithiel
Par

Atlantic Coast Line diverges to Newquay

St Austell
Truro

Maritime Line diverges to Falmouth

St Ives Bay Line diverges to St Ives

Penzance

The section of line between St Austell and Truro has recently been upgraded to double track, to allow better timekeeping and reduce delays to services.

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