Ivybridge's first station was located at 50°23′45″N3°55′21″W / 50.3957°N 3.9225°W / 50.3957; -3.9225. It was not complete when the South Devon Railway was opened,[3] but was brought into use just six weeks later on 15 June 1848. The building was situated on the north side of the track, immediately to the west of Ivybridge Viaduct.[4] Passenger trains were withdrawn on 2 March 1959 but goods traffic continued until 29 November 1965.[5][6]
A plaque commemorating the opening, mounted on a granite boulder near the entrance
A new station costing £380,000 was opened east of the viaduct on 15 July 1994 by British Rail under the Regional Railways sector. To fit in the narrow site, the platforms are staggered, with the eastbound platform nearer to Plymouth than the westbound. It was marketed as a Park and Ride station with a large 100-space car park to entice car drivers off the A38 road into Plymouth, but the level of train service has never offered the convenient and frequent service that is normally associated with such facilities.[5]
An early timetable[8] shows just two of the ten trains to Plymouth arriving there before 09:00 and the last return train leaving at 21:11. The afternoon service was gradually reduced until by September 1999[9] only 7 trains ran to Plymouth and 9 return. From 20 May 2001,[10] a through service from London Waterloo station was introduced by South West Trains, which resulted in 11 trains each way.
When First Great Western proposed their new Winter 2006 service, there were many complaints as it would have seen a drastic reduction in trains calling at Ivybridge. After considering the position, a total of 9 trains were scheduled by the two companies but with just one train arriving in Plymouth before 09:00.[11]
