Barnstaple railway station Barnstaple railway station Barnstaple railway station is the northern terminus of the Tarka Line and serves the town of Barnstaple, Devon. It is down-line from via . It is managed by Great Western Railway, which also operates the train service. It was known as Barnstaple Junction from 1874 to 1970 as it was the junction between lines to , , and Exeter. A railway for goods traffic was operated from Fremington Quay, opening in August 1848. On 1 August 1854 the North Devon Railway opened from Barnstaple to Crediton. Trains were extended via Fremington to Bideford on 2 November 1855.
Barnstaple it developed other industries, such as shipbuilding, foundries and sawmills. Its Victorian market survives, with its high glass and timber roof on iron columns. Barnstaple railway station is the terminus of a branch line from Exeter, known as the Tarka Line. Since 1974, Barnstaple has been a civil parish governed by town council. The parish itself had a population of 24,033 and including the satellite settlements known as the Barnstaple Town Area, it is 53,514. The old spelling Barnstable is now obsolete, but is retained by an American county and town and is still sometimes used for Bideford or Barnstable