 The Exeter to Plymouth railway of the LSWR needs to be reopened to connect Cornwall and Plymouth to the rest of the UK railway system on an all weather basis . There are proposals to reopen the line from Tavistock to Bere Alston for a through service to Plymouth . On the night of 4 February 2014 , amid high winds and extremely rough seas , part of the sea wall at Dawlish was breached washing away around 40 metres ( 130 ft ) of the wall and the ballast under the railway immediately behind . The line was closed . Network Rail began repair work and the line reopened on 4 April 2014 . In the wake of widespread disruption caused by damage to the mainline track at Dawlish by coastal storms in February 2014 , Network Rail are considering reopening the Tavistock to Okehampton and Exeter section of the line as an alternative to the coastal route . 
