Not to sure about Ashburton,OK I suppose.As a non resident of the area,still prefer Dawlish to anywhere else!On the subject of towns,I detest Paignton,far too common.Torquay alright but parking too expensive.Newton Abbot - nope,don't like it.Not keen on Totnes either.Exmouth is really nice,shame about Babooshka shop though,(my wife's paradise),its gone now hasn't it? Teignmouth & Shaldon are also ...
Can't see how you can pedestrianise Tuck's plot,where's the traffic gonna go - via the railway line to Teignmouth? What bugs me is all the traffic continually parking in the Strand.Stop the parking altogether and widen the pavement.That'll make you locals walk more.
If you think Dawlish has its faults, then try living in Andover, a total dive of a place on the A303.Its 3 times the size of Dawlish and is crowded with London overspill estates and Industrial estates.A total dive of a place.Its also one of the most expensive places in England for petrol.It has no department store either. Give me Dawlish any day.