The Conwy Valley Line
The Conwy Valley line runs from Llandudno via Llandudno Junction to Blaenau Ffestiniog, and was originally part of the London and North Western Railway, being opened in stages to 1879.
The primary purpose of the line was to carry slate from the Ffestiniog quarries to a specially built quay at Deganwy for export by sea. The line also provided goods facilities for the market town of Llanrwst, and via the extensive facilities at Betws-y-Coed on the London to Holyhead A5 turnpike road it served many isolated communities in Snowdonia and also the developing tourist industry.
The first section from Llandudno Junction to Llanrwst (now North Llanrwst) was built as the Conway and Llanrwst Railway and opened in 1863. The LNWR took over in 1863 and opened the extension to Betws-y-Coed in 1868.
The next extension was to Blaenau Ffestiniog to access the output of the large slate quarries there. At first the LNWR proposed a 2' narrow gauge railway via the steeply graded Lledr Valley to Blaenau Ffestiniog, this being the 'Bettws & Festiniog Railway'; authorisation was sought in November 1870. After construction began, it was decided that the extension would be built to standard gauge, allowing through running of trains. Between 1874 and 1879 the railway tunnel underneath Moel Dyrnogydd was bored, and in July 1879 a terminus was initially opened by the tunnel entrance. The line was subsequently extended by the best part of a mile to a terminus in the town, which opened 31 March 1881.
Blaenau Ffestiniog's other standard gauge railway, the Bala and Ffestiniog Railway, was closed to all traffic in 1961, and a portion was flooded in the creation of the Llyn Celyn reservoir. A rail connection was desired for the nuclear power station under construction at Trawsfynydd, and a connecting line was built from Blaenau Ffestiniog North to the site of the demolished Blaenau Ffestiniog Central station for freight use. With the reconstruction of the Ffestiniog Railway, passenger services were relocated to a new joint station on the site of the old Central station in 1982. Regular freight traffic to Trawsfynydd ceased in 1995 following closure of the power station.
Recently a preservation group has been clearing the undergrowth from the Trawsfyndd to Blaenau Ffestiniog section.
Read MoreThe primary purpose of the line was to carry slate from the Ffestiniog quarries to a specially built quay at Deganwy for export by sea. The line also provided goods facilities for the market town of Llanrwst, and via the extensive facilities at Betws-y-Coed on the London to Holyhead A5 turnpike road it served many isolated communities in Snowdonia and also the developing tourist industry.
The first section from Llandudno Junction to Llanrwst (now North Llanrwst) was built as the Conway and Llanrwst Railway and opened in 1863. The LNWR took over in 1863 and opened the extension to Betws-y-Coed in 1868.
The next extension was to Blaenau Ffestiniog to access the output of the large slate quarries there. At first the LNWR proposed a 2' narrow gauge railway via the steeply graded Lledr Valley to Blaenau Ffestiniog, this being the 'Bettws & Festiniog Railway'; authorisation was sought in November 1870. After construction began, it was decided that the extension would be built to standard gauge, allowing through running of trains. Between 1874 and 1879 the railway tunnel underneath Moel Dyrnogydd was bored, and in July 1879 a terminus was initially opened by the tunnel entrance. The line was subsequently extended by the best part of a mile to a terminus in the town, which opened 31 March 1881.
Blaenau Ffestiniog's other standard gauge railway, the Bala and Ffestiniog Railway, was closed to all traffic in 1961, and a portion was flooded in the creation of the Llyn Celyn reservoir. A rail connection was desired for the nuclear power station under construction at Trawsfynydd, and a connecting line was built from Blaenau Ffestiniog North to the site of the demolished Blaenau Ffestiniog Central station for freight use. With the reconstruction of the Ffestiniog Railway, passenger services were relocated to a new joint station on the site of the old Central station in 1982. Regular freight traffic to Trawsfynydd ceased in 1995 following closure of the power station.
Recently a preservation group has been clearing the undergrowth from the Trawsfyndd to Blaenau Ffestiniog section.
