facilities were opened on the junction side of Locking Road in 1862; the first goods dispatched were three truck loads of flower pots from the nearby Royal Pottery. On 20 July 1866, a large passenger station was opened adjacent to this, which allowed the closure of Brunel's 1841 terminus and the elimination of the Locking Road level crossing, although a second one across Devonshire Road remained. The branch was given a second track at the same time. The new station again featured a train shed which covered the platforms. This was designed by the railway's engineer, Francis Fox, and was similar to the one built by him at about the same time at Exeter. The two platforms were supplemented by an excursion platform next to the goods depot. A new Bristol and Exeter Hotel was opened to serve the new station; it was later renamed The Town Crier. A signal box was provided and is now the earliest part of the station to survive. Although disused, it is believed to be the oldest signal box in Britain. It shows signs of a later extension to allow extra signal levers needed when the station was enlarged. Until now the branch had been part of Brunel's broad gauge network, but on 1 July 1875 a third rail was added to each line which allowed gauge trains to also reach the town. From 1879 no broad gauge trains were timetabled along the branch, although they continued to operate on the main line until 20 May 1892. In the meantime, the Bristol and Exeter Railway had been amalgamated into the Great Western Railway on 1 January 1876. 1884 station The Bristol and Exeter Railway had obtained an Act of Parliament in 1875 to construct a new loop line through the town, which would allow trains to serve the town and then continue along the main line. No action was taken on this for many years which led to a planning blight along the proposed route. An 1880 court case forced the Great Western Railway to pay 5% interest to the affected property owners, which prompted the railway company into action. The new line and station were opened on 1 March 1884. This was not the end of the old branch line as for several years a trolley was taken along the old tracks to collect mail from a postal train at the old Junction