THE popular Sunday Rover, a train service which travels between Okehampton and Exeter, will return this summer with a brand new name.

Starting next week, the service will now be called Summer Trains to Exeter from Okehampton.

The decision was made by rail bosses to change the name as there was no longer an accompanying Sunday Rover bus service.

Commencing on May 21 there will be four trains every Sunday travelling from Okehampton to Exeter and vice versa.

Leaving from Okehampton Station, the summer train service will stop at Sampford Courtenay, Crediton, Newton St Cyres, Exeter St Davids, Exeter Central and St James’ Park.

The train, organised by Great Western Rail in partnership with OkeRail and Devon County Council, will run until September.

The chair of OkeRail CIC, Michael Ireland, said: ‘The Sunday Rover will now be known as “Summer Trains to Exeter from Okehampton”. We are extremely grateful to Great Western Railway for supplying new leaflets, which will be posted through the letter boxes of Okehampton residents soon.’

Mike Davies, chair of OkeRail Forum, added: ‘It is wonderful that the Sunday train service will be running again from the end of May and through the Summer. I am extremely appreciative to Devon County Council for continuing to agree to heavily subsidise the service for us for another year.

‘The Sunday Rover has proved very popular in recent years and continues to show there is a requirement from the people of Okehampton, North Devon, and North Cornwall for connectivity to the wider rail network.’

The regular train service from Okehampton to Meldon will also be up and running for the summer from May 21.

A spokesperson from Dartmoor Railway said: ‘The train service was originally scheduled to start at Easter but wasn’t able to due to technical difficulties.

‘The problem has now been resolved and the service will start running from Sunday, May 21.’

This train service will be available on Saturdays, Sundays and Bank Holidays.