
The evolution of transport in Cornwall has been shaped by the county's strong maritime, mining and industrial traditions and much of the transport infrastructure reflects this heritage.
However, with the decline in mining and industry over the last century and more, transport provision in
Cornwall has increasingly focused on the needs of tourism and holiday-makers. An example of this is the improvement of the
A30 trunk road; the substantial
dual carriageway
A dual carriageway ( BE) or divided highway ( AE) is a class of highway with carriageways for traffic travelling in opposite directions separated by a central reservation (BrE) or median (AmE). Roads with two or more carriageways which are ...
sections have greatly relieved summer traffic congestion but are very under-used in winter.
In the case of the railway system, although Cornwall has lost some of its rail network since nationalisation in 1948, it has fared better than many other rural areas of England. In part, this is because many Cornish lines serve holiday destinations and are visitor attractions in their own right.
General situation

The inland transport network consists of longitudinal spines (the
A30,
A38 and
A39 trunk roads (though the A39 is no longer designated as such) and the former
Great Western Railway
The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a British railway company that linked London with the southwest, west and West Midlands of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament on 31 August 1835 and ran ...
main line through Cornwall) from which secondary roads and railway branch lines radiate to ports and resorts on the coast.
As a maritime county, ports and sea transport were once vital to Cornwall's prosperity: however, they are less important now. Fishing, too, has traditionally been a core industry and
Newlyn remains one of the largest fishing ports in southern Britain and a major centre for distribution of fish and shell-fish to continental Europe. Fish from the ports was an important component of the freight traffic for Cornish railways although now the fish is conveyed by road.
As well as Newlyn, several other ports (notably
Padstow) and also Newquay cater for commercial fishing on a smaller scale. Many more small harbours cater to sport angling, again reflecting the county's reliance on tourism and leisure.
The coastline of Cornwall is deeply indented (particularly in the south) by estuaries and
rias (flooded river valleys) so
Cornwall's ferry crossings are an important part of today's transport mix. The Isles of Scilly are accessible by sea from Penzance.
Road transport in Cornwall

Cornwall is one of the few English counties with no motorways. However,
trunk road access to and from the rest of the UK is at the heart of Cornwall's transport infrastructure and it is now possible to drive on uninterrupted
dual carriageway
A dual carriageway ( BE) or divided highway ( AE) is a class of highway with carriageways for traffic travelling in opposite directions separated by a central reservation (BrE) or median (AmE). Roads with two or more carriageways which are ...
from
Glasgow to
Bodmin Moor
Bodmin Moor ( kw, Goon Brenn) is a granite moorland in north-eastern Cornwall, England. It is in size, and dates from the Carboniferous period of geological history. It includes Brown Willy, the highest point in Cornwall, and Rough Tor, a s ...
.
The principal road routes into Cornwall for both freight and passenger vehicles are the A30 from Exeter and the A38 from Plymouth and south Devon.
:
A30: The A30 between Exeter and Penzance is part of the
Trans-European Road Network and is regarded by the
Highways Agency as a strategic route corridor to the south west. The route has been greatly improved and upgraded in the past thirty years. There were only two short sections of dual carriageway on the of the A30 between
Exeter
Exeter () is a city in Devon, South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol.
In Roman Britain, Exeter was established as the base of Legio II Augusta under the personal comm ...
and
Penzance
Penzance ( ; kw, Pennsans) is a town, civil parish and port in the Penwith district of Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is the most westerly major town in Cornwall and is about west-southwest of Plymouth and west-southwest of London. Situated ...
before 1976, but today only of
single carriageway remain (one short stretch on Bodmin Moor and the rest in west Cornwall).
:
A38: A38 traffic into south-east Cornwall used to face severe delays at the
Torpoint ferry (see below) across the
River Tamar but this was relieved by the opening of the
Tamar Bridge (a
toll suspension bridge
A suspension bridge is a type of bridge in which the deck (bridge), deck is hung below suspension wire rope, cables on vertical suspenders. The first modern examples of this type of bridge were built in the early 1800s. Simple suspension bridg ...
) in 1961. According to the
Highways Agency, ''...it is not envisaged that the A38 has, or will have, a strategic role to rival that of the A30; rather it has a sub-regional role to provide access between Cornwall and Plymouth and other parts of South Devon''. Nonetheless, the A38 provides an alternative route for traffic from Exeter and the
M5 motorway heading to south-east Cornwall. The increase in traffic warranted
two extra lanes being added to the Tamar Bridge in 2001 (the first suspension bridge in the world to be widened while remaining open to traffic).
Other routes into Cornwall include the
A39 from Barnstaple and Bideford to Bude and on to Wadebridge and south-west Cornwall; the A3072 from Hatherleigh and central Devon to Bude; and the A390 from Tavistock to Callington and Liskeard.
Early routes

In prehistoric times there were trackways across mid-Cornwall, trade routes between Ireland and Brittany. These arose because of the need to avoid the sea passage round Land's End. From Hayle on the north coast the track crossed to Mount's Bay; from the Camel estuary there were several routes. These went to Fowey, somewhere near Pentewan and to the River Fal. The east-west route was diverted northwards because of the obstacle of Bodmin Moor. From Mount's Bay it crossed the Carnmenellis and Hensbarrow moorlands and probably passed to the northwest of Bodmin Moor to connect with a route into the rest of Britain near
Kilkhampton. It is likely that primitive main roads were in existence by the beginning of the 14th century. In medieval times a road known as the Royal Cornish Way began with a crossing of the River Tamar by Polston Bridge near Launceston. This bridge was probably built soon after the Norman conquerors had established a castle at Launceston. The medieval road then went by Downhead and
Davidstow through Camelford (established as a borough in 1259) to the ford across the River Camel at Wade (Wadebridge) where a weekly market and two annual fairs were established in 1312. It then continued through St Columb Major and Mitchell to
Truro. Another medieval way into Cornwall was by the Cremyll ferry from
Plymouth
Plymouth () is a port city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to the west and south-west.
Plymouth ...
and then by Millbrook and Crafthole to
Looe where Looe bridge had been built in 1411-36.
Traffic flows and improvements
Data collected on the A30 Launceston bypass shows that annual average daily traffic rose from 14,318 in 1995 to 20,842 in 2005. As well as increased traffic from outside the county, Cornwall's resident population has grown more rapidly than average. The number of people living in Cornwall increased by 32 per cent between 1971 and 2001, compared to an average increase of 6.5 per cent in England as a whole.
Despite the very substantial increase in resident and visiting traffic, road improvements have reduced congestion on the major routes.
In particular,
dualling of the A30 has relieved most of the congestion as towns along the route which were formally
bottlenecks have been
bypassed. Notable schemes include: Launceston bypass (1975); Bodmin bypass (1977); and the Fraddon and Indian Queens bypass and associated A39 spur(1995).
The most recent scheme is 7 miles of new dual carriageway to the north of
Goss Moor. Opened in July 2007, the new road relieved a notoriously congested single carriageway stretch which included a bottleneck at the bridge carrying the
Par-Newquay railway over the road. This scheme has reduced congestion, shortened journey times and reduced traffic volumes on the A39 and the A390. More than 30,000 vehicles a day use the new road on weekdays and up to 43,000 on Saturdays in August.
As well as dualling, villages have been bypassed on sections that remain single carriageway; for example, the mile of bypass opened in 1991 at
Zelah on the
Carland Cross to
Chiverton Cross
Chiverton Cross is a road junction in west Cornwall, England, United Kingdom, about four miles (6 kilometres) north-east of Redruth and five miles (8 km) west of Truro at . Its name derives from Chyverton House which is in the extreme ea ...
section.
Bus services
First Kernow,
Plymouth Citybus and Go Cornwall Bus,
Stagecoach South West
Stagecoach South West is a bus operator providing services in Devon and East Cornwall along with coach services to Bristol. It is a subsidiary of Stagecoach.
History Devon General
The Devon General Omnibus and Touring Company commenced operat ...
, Hopley's Coaches and Summercourt Travel also operate services around the county including services to Devon.
Since Cornwall Council gained devolved transport responsibilities they have launched the
Transport for Cornwall brand and have introduced an integrated ticketing system across operators and secured increased funding for new buses in Cornwall.
A
park and ride express bus service operates in Truro, transporting passengers from
Threemilestone
Threemilestone ( kw, Mentrimildir) is a small village in the civil parish of Kenwyn, located precisely three miles west of Truro, the only city in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. Threemilestone has grown in recent years, as housing estates to t ...
to Truro city centre.
Rail transport in Cornwall
History

Railways remain a core part of the county's transport infrastructure, with 37 stations within it.
Cornish engineer
Richard Trevithick (who was developing high pressure stationary steam engines for Cornwall's industries) produced the world's first locomotive in 1802 by mounting an engine on wheels to run on rails. A horse-worked
tramway was opened from
Poldice mine to the harbour at
Portreath in 1809 and many similar lines were then built linking mines with ports. The first steam-powered railway in Cornwall, the
Bodmin and Wadebridge Railway, opened on 30 September 1834 less than ten years after the world's earliest steam railway, the
Stockton and Darlington.
At its height, the railway system in Cornwall resembled the road network – central spines with branches to the coast. The
Great Western Railway
The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a British railway company that linked London with the southwest, west and West Midlands of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament on 31 August 1835 and ran ...
's main line from
Plymouth
Plymouth () is a port city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to the west and south-west.
Plymouth ...
to
Penzance
Penzance ( ; kw, Pennsans) is a town, civil parish and port in the Penwith district of Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is the most westerly major town in Cornwall and is about west-southwest of Plymouth and west-southwest of London. Situated ...
loosely followed the route of the A38 from Plymouth to the south of
Bodmin
Bodmin () is a town and civil parish in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is situated south-west of Bodmin Moor.
The extent of the civil parish corresponds fairly closely to that of the town so is mostly urban in character. It is bordere ...
then that of the A30 to
Truro,
Redruth
Redruth ( , kw, Resrudh) is a town and civil parishes in Cornwall, civil parish in Cornwall, England. The population of Redruth was 14,018 at the 2011 census. In the same year the population of the Camborne-Redruth urban area, which also inc ...
and Penzance from 1859; the
London & South Western Railway (LSWR)'s system in
north Cornwall resembled that of the A39 beyond Camelford from 1895 (see maps).
The Cornish rail network suffered a substantial reduction during the 1960s due to the
Beeching cuts. North Cornwall was hardest hit – the entire former
North Cornwall Railway system which served Bude, Camelford, Wadebridge and Padstow was closed on 3 October 1966 (although the Wadebridge-Padstow section was retained for a further three months).
Further west, the line from
Chacewater to St Agnes and Newquay closed on 4 February 1963 after just 60 years of existence. The
Helston branch (which left the main line at
Gwinear Road) closed to passengers on 3 October 1962 and to goods traffic two years later.
Today, the former
Great Western Railway
The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a British railway company that linked London with the southwest, west and West Midlands of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament on 31 August 1835 and ran ...
Penzance-Plymouth main line remains open and four ex-GWR branch lines (together with the ex-LSWR Callington branch as far as
Gunnislake) survived the Beeching cuts, although Beeching had proposed the closure of the branches to Looe and St Ives. This network provides long distance rail services from stations on the main line directly to London and to many other parts of England and Wales. These services are fed by the branch lines. Exceptionally, the Newquay branch continues to provide intercity services between May and September. As well as long distance and holiday services, commuter and 'shopper' trains from Cornwall serve Plymouth, Devon.
Lines

The
Cornish Main Line runs for 75¼ miles through the centre of Cornwall from
Penzance
Penzance ( ; kw, Pennsans) is a town, civil parish and port in the Penwith district of Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is the most westerly major town in Cornwall and is about west-southwest of Plymouth and west-southwest of London. Situated ...
to
Saltash, where it continues on the
Royal Albert Bridge across the
River Tamar to
Plymouth
Plymouth () is a port city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to the west and south-west.
Plymouth ...
in Devon. It is the most westerly section of the route to Penzance from
London Paddington.
As noted above, five branch lines serve Cornwall. Four have been designated as
Community rail lines and are promoted by the
Devon and Cornwall Rail Partnership. The fifth, to Newquay, carries local Community Rail trains but the line itself cannot be designated because of the presence of intercity and freight trains. They are:
*
St Ives Bay Line
The St Ives Bay Line is a railway line from to in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It was opened in 1877, the last new broad gauge passenger railway to be constructed in the country. Converted to standard gauge in 1892, it continues to ...
–
St Erth to
St Ives (4¼ miles)
*
Maritime Line
The Maritime Line is a railway line that runs in the valley of the River Fal from Truro, the county town, to Falmouth on the south coast of Cornwall, England.
History
The railway line, now known as The Maritime Line, was built by the Cornwal ...
–
Truro to
Falmouth (12¼ miles)
*
Atlantic Coast Line (local passenger trains only) –
Par to
Newquay (20¾ miles)
*
Looe Valley Line –
Liskeard to
Looe (8¾ miles)
*
Tamar Valley Line – Plymouth to
Gunnislake (15 miles)
See full list of stations in
Appendix One below.
Services

Most services are operated by
Great Western Railway
The Great Western Railway (GWR) was a British railway company that linked London with the southwest, west and West Midlands of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament on 31 August 1835 and ran ...
including several through trains to London such as the ''
Cornish Riviera Express'' that starts its journey mid-morning, and the ''
Night Riviera'' sleeping car service. There are three services each day operated by
CrossCountry
CrossCountry (legal name XC Trains Limited) is a train operating company in the United Kingdom owned by Arriva UK Trains, operating the Cross Country franchise.
The CrossCountry franchise was restructured by the Department for Transport (DfT) ...
to destinations as far afield as
Aberdeen.
Typical journey times from Truro are:
Redruth
Redruth ( , kw, Resrudh) is a town and civil parishes in Cornwall, civil parish in Cornwall, England. The population of Redruth was 14,018 at the 2011 census. In the same year the population of the Camborne-Redruth urban area, which also inc ...
13
min.;
St Austell
St Austell (; kw, Sans Austel) is a town in Cornwall, England, south of Bodmin and west of the border with Devon.
St Austell is one of the largest towns in Cornwall; at the 2011 census it had a population of 19,958.
History
St Austell wa ...
17 min.; Falmouth 23 min.; Penzance 50 min.; St Ives 1 hr.; Plymouth 1¼ hr. Longer distance direct trains take around 2 hr. to
Exeter St Davids;
Bristol 3 hr. 20 min.; London Paddington 4¾ hr.;
Birmingham 4 hr. 50 min.;
[ Edinburgh 10 ¼ hr.
The Atlantic Coast Line to Newquay carries intercity services during the summer. Most of these run on Saturdays and Sundays but there is also a daily return service from London Paddington in July and August.
A number of special discounts and promotions are available to encourage travel on off-peak services, including a special "Devon and Cornwall Railcard" which offers discounts to local residents. The "Plus Bus" scheme allows through ticketing between trains and buses in many towns. Attractions and towns not on the current rail network are served by buses from stations such as Bodmin Parkway, St Austell, Redruth, St Ives and Penzance.
]
Rail freight
The carriage of rail freight has diminished since the 1950s. Today, the principal remaining traffic in Cornwall is china clay from the St Austell area and Goonbarrow on the Newquay line; this traffic is centred on St Blazey
St Blazey ( kw, Lanndreth) is a small town in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom.
St Blaise is the civil parish in which St Blazey is situated; the name St Blaise is also used by the town council. The village of Biscovey and the settlements of ...
depot (which is on the Newquay branch, close to Par) and the freight-only line from Lostwithiel to Fowey docks where the china clay is loaded on to ships. A small amount of cement is carried to north of Liskeard for road distribution. The docks at Falmouth are also rail connected but see no regular traffic.
Air
Airports
Newquay Airport offers or will soon offer flights up-country to Bristol, Leeds, London (Gatwick/Stansted), Manchester, Newcastle, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Plymouth, Southampton, Cardiff and the Isle of Man, and to destinations abroad including Chambéry, Dublin, Geneva, Reus, St. Brieuc, Düsseldorf, Girona, Alicante
Alicante ( ca-valencia, Alacant) is a city and municipality in the Valencian Community, Spain. It is the capital of the province of Alicante and a historic Mediterranean port. The population of the city was 337,482 , the second-largest in th ...
, and a summer service to Zürich.
Land's End Airport , situated near St Just in Penwith, west of Penzance
Penzance ( ; kw, Pennsans) is a town, civil parish and port in the Penwith district of Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is the most westerly major town in Cornwall and is about west-southwest of Plymouth and west-southwest of London. Situated ...
, is the most south westerly airport of mainland Britain. It is owned by the Isles of Scilly Steamship Company (ISSC). ISSC's subsidiary Land's End Airport Limited operates the airport, and another subsidiary, Isles of Scilly Skybus
Isles of Scilly Skybus is a British airline which operates year-round scheduled services to the Isles of Scilly from Land's End Airport and Newquay Airport in Cornwall, and seasonal scheduled services from Exeter. Their head office is locate ...
, operates a regular passenger service to St Mary's in the Isles of Scilly
The Isles of Scilly (; kw, Syllan, ', or ) is an archipelago off the southwestern tip of Cornwall, England. One of the islands, St Agnes, is the most southerly point in Britain, being over further south than the most southerly point of the ...
as well as scenic flights around west Penwith.
Airfields
River and sea transport
Major ferries
The two major ferry services in Cornwall are the Torpoint Ferry which links Cornwall and Devon and the Isles of Scilly Steamship Company service linking the Isles of Scilly
The Isles of Scilly (; kw, Syllan, ', or ) is an archipelago off the southwestern tip of Cornwall, England. One of the islands, St Agnes, is the most southerly point in Britain, being over further south than the most southerly point of the ...
to the mainland.
The Torpoint Ferry is a chain ferry
A cable ferry (including the terms chain ferry, swing ferry, floating bridge, or punt) is a ferry that is guided (and in many cases propelled) across a river or large body of water by cables connected to both shores. Early cable ferries often ...
which carries cars and pedestrians across the Hamoaze at the mouth of the River Tamar connecting Torpoint in Cornwall with Devonport in Plymouth
Plymouth () is a port city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to the west and south-west.
Plymouth ...
, Devon.
The Isles of Scilly ferry service operates seasonally (March–November) from Penzance
Penzance ( ; kw, Pennsans) is a town, civil parish and port in the Penwith district of Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is the most westerly major town in Cornwall and is about west-southwest of Plymouth and west-southwest of London. Situated ...
to Isles of Scilly
The Isles of Scilly (; kw, Syllan, ', or ) is an archipelago off the southwestern tip of Cornwall, England. One of the islands, St Agnes, is the most southerly point in Britain, being over further south than the most southerly point of the ...
. The operating company is based in Penzance and also operates a year-round cargo service. The company's ferry vessel is named '' Scillonian III'' and its cargo vessel is named ''Gry Maritha''.
Other ferries
The King Harry Ferry is a chain ferry
A cable ferry (including the terms chain ferry, swing ferry, floating bridge, or punt) is a ferry that is guided (and in many cases propelled) across a river or large body of water by cables connected to both shores. Early cable ferries often ...
which carries cars and pedestrians across Carrick Roads in the estuary of the River Fal. The crossing has been voted one of the ten most scenic ferry trips in the world by '' The Independent'', alongside the Staten Island Ferry in New York City and the Star Ferry
The Star Ferry is a passenger ferry service operator and tourist attraction in Hong Kong. Its principal routes carry passengers across Victoria Harbour, between Hong Kong Island, and Kowloon. The service is operated by the Star Ferry Com ...
in Hong Kong.
Further down the Fal estuary, the St Mawes Ferry connects St Mawes
St Mawes ( kw, Lannvowsedh) is a village on the end of the Roseland Peninsula, in the eastern side of Falmouth harbour, on the south coast of Cornwall, United Kingdom. The village, formerly two separate hamlets, lies on the east bank of the ...
with Falmouth and provides a year-round service to pedestrians and cyclists.
Fal River Links
Fal River Links is a consolidation of ferry and boat services serving the River Fal, the River Truro, and Carrick Roads in Cornwall, United Kingdom, providing links to many coastal towns and villages.
See also
* King Harry Ferry
The King Har ...
is a consolidation of ferry and boat services connecting Truro and Falmouth, and stopping at a few coastal villages in between.
The Black Tor Ferry crosses the tidal River Camel between Padstow and Rock. The ferry carries pedestrians and cyclists only (not vehicles).
A number of other ferry services operate in Cornwall and full details of these are listed on the Cornwall Council website.
See also
* Cornish Way
* West Country Ketch
References
Further reading
*Fairclough, A. (1970) ''The Story of Cornwall's Railways''. Truro: Tor Mark Press
{{Cornwall railway stations
Transport in South West England