Thank you to everyone who has taken time to comment in this thread, I didn't get a chance to log on yesterday, and am delighted by the amount of opinion and advice I've received.
A number of people here have summed the situation up very well for me thanks.
Jacks, I'm delighted that you were moved to join just because of me

. I commute from Paignton to Torbay Hospital, and am usually passing through there at 7:50ish in the morning, and back at some point after 5:15 depending on how smartly I can get away from work. I may well have seen you at some point. I agree that the road round from the Grand and Torquay station is a nightmare, and I always try to time my approach so that I don't have to stop. I do use the bit of pavement cycle lane there, one of the few I do, as it helps me to achieve this. I do always stop in the box though, as I can't quite bring myself to go through and up onto the corner, though it is clearly a sensible and safer option. This has been made more difficult for me since I swapped from spd type pedals to road shoes and speedplay pedals. I find it difficult to clip in on uphill starts, and have on a few occasions had me foot slip off the pedal, (actually the slope up to the lights at Torre station are worse, the first day I was on the new pedals I had to stop a few car lengths back, on the steepest bit, and when I tried to go again I almost joined a very surprised and irritated man in the passenger seat of his convertible Mercedes!
RB