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The Encyclopaedia of Plymouth History

St BUDEAUX VICTORIA ROAD STATION (PDSWJR)

St Budeaux Victoria Road Station is located between Tamerton Foliot and Ford Stations on the Southern Railway main line.  It is adjacent to St Budeaux Square and Victoria Road. It is still open and used by trains on the Plymouth to Gunnislake service but looks nothing like the photograph on the right.

The Station was built by the Plymouth, Devonport and South Western Junction Railway and opened on Monday June 2nd 1890.  It was at first named just St Budeaux, then became St Budeaux for Saltash and finally, upon Nationalisation in 1948, St Budeaux Victoria Road to distinguish it from the Western Region's station.

On Wednesday September 26th 1906 the LSWR inaugurated its new suburban service between Devonport and St Budeaux.  There were eighteen trains in each direction on weekdays and eight on Sundays. The first car left Devonport and 6.18am, returning from St Budeaux at 6.40am.   The last car left Devonport at 10.30pm and St Budeaux at 11.10pm.  On Sundays the service would start at 9.08am from Devonport and 9.27am from St Budeaux and continue until the last train left Devonport at 10.08pm and St Budeaux at 10.25pm.   The fare from Devonport to Camel's Head was one penny and to Weston Mill and St Budeaux, tuppence. All trains called at Ford Station.

From Monday October 1st 1906 this service was extended in to Plymouth's Friary Station.

In March 1941, just before the Plymouth Blitz, the Great Western and Southern Railways laid in a link between their lines at St Budeaux.   This enabled GWR trains to ans from London to use the lightly-used Southern main line to get to Exeter if their own main line was damaged.  It also meant that Southern trains had an alternative route into and out of Plymouth in need be.

Copyright: Brian Moseley, Plymouth, UK

Page updated: 14 July 2006

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