| Carnarvonshire Railway | |
|---|---|
| Overview | |
| Locale | Wales |
| History | |
| Opened | 29 July 1862 |
| Closed | December 1964 |
| Technical | |
| Line length | 27 miles (43 km) |
| Track gauge | 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) |
Carnarvonshire Railway | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Carnarvonshire Railway was a railway connecting Caernarvon (terminus of the Bangor and Caernarvon Railway line from Bangor) with Afon Wen. [1]
| Carnarvonshire Railway Act 1862 | |
|---|---|
| Act of Parliament | |
 | |
| Citation | 25 & 26 Vict. c. ccii |
The Carnarvonshire Railway was absorbed into the LNWR in 1869. [2] At the grouping of the railways in 1921 the LNWR became part of the LMS.
At Afon Wen, a junction connected with the Cambrian Line (GWR) to Pwllheli in one direction and to Porthmadog in the other, with the LNWR (and later LMS) having running rights to both. The line had two branches, one from Caernarfon to Llanberis, which was built by the Carnarvon and Llanberis Railway and the other from Penygroes to Nantlle. The latter originally formed part of the narrow gauge Nantlle Railway, which between Penygroes and Caernarvon had been incorporated into the Carnarvonshire Railway and converted to standard gauge.
Regular passenger service on the Llanberis branch ceased in the 1930 (but summer passenger excursions from Llandudno etc. ran from 1932 until 1939 and again from 1946 until 1962). Likewise the Nantlle branch passenger service also ceased in 1932. The remaining lines and services (Afon Wen to Caernarvon) were shut completely as part of the Beeching Axe in December 1964.
A section of the line, from Caernarfon to Dinas, was incorporated into the reopened narrow gauge Welsh Highland Railway as the first phase of the line, in 1997. Several miles of the trackbed southwards from Dinas have been used to improve the A487 road. Some original sections remain and have been used as part of National Cycle Route 8.
The cycle route (Lôn Eifion) and the narrow gauge railway share the old trackbed south of Caernarfon to Dinas.
The tunnel under the centre of Caernarfon has been reopened, for road traffic.
Caernarfon is a royal town, community and port in Gwynedd, Wales. It has a population of 9,852. It lies along the A487 road, on the eastern shore of the Menai Strait, opposite the island of Anglesey. The city of Bangor is 8.6 miles (13.8 km) to the north-east, while Snowdonia (Eryri) fringes Caernarfon to the east and south-east.
Rhyd Ddu is a station on the narrow gauge Welsh Highland Railway, which was built in 1881 as the North Wales Narrow Gauge Railways Moel Tryfan Undertaking to carry dressed slate to Dinas Junction on the LNWR. It has also previously been named both "Snowdon" and "South Snowdon".
Dinas is a station on the narrow gauge Welsh Highland Railway, which was built in 1877 as the North Wales Narrow Gauge Railways Moel Tryfan Undertaking to carry dressed slate for trans-shipment to the LNWR. Passenger services ceased on 26 September 1936 until which time Dinas had been a joint station, known as Dinas Junction with the LNWR and later the LMS. In 1951, British Railways closed their part of the station but the line through the station remained open until the line from Caernarvon to Afon Wen was closed in 1964. The trackbed was subsequently developed as the Lôn Eifion tourist cycle route.
Caernarfon Station is the northern terminus of the narrow gauge Welsh Highland Railway, located in the town of Caernarfon. It was opened on 11 October 1997 when the line was constructed from Dinas.
The Nantlle Railway was a Welsh narrow gauge railway. It was built to carry slate from several slate quarries across the Nantlle Valley to the harbour at Caernarfon for export by sea. The line provided a passenger service between Caernarfon and Talysarn from 1856 to 1865. It was the first public railway to be operated in North Wales.
Afon Wen was a railway station in Afon Wen, Gwynedd, Wales, four miles (6 km) west of Criccieth.
Chwilog railway station served the village of Chwilog, Gwynedd, Wales. It was opened in 1867 by the Carnarvonshire Railway, who were subsequently taken over by the LNWR, passing to the LMSR at the Grouping of 1923. The station came under the London Midland Region of British Railways from nationalisation in 1948.
Caernarvon railway station was a station on the former Bangor and Carnarvon Railway between Caernarfon, Gwynedd and Menai Suspension Bridge near Bangor. The station was closed to all traffic in January 1972. The station has since been demolished and the site redeveloped.
Pontrhythallt was a railway station in the village of Pont Rhythallt, Gwynedd, Wales. This station opened in 1869 and closed for regular passenger services in 1930, but trains continued to pass through until the last goods train of all on 3 September 1964, which delivered a panel of lap fencing.
Brynkir railway station was opened by the Carnarvonshire Railway on the western edge of the village of Bryncir, Gwynedd, Wales.
Penygroes railway station was located in Penygroes, Gwynedd, Wales.
Groeslon railway station served the village of Groeslon, Gwynedd, Wales. It operated first as part of the Nantlle Tramway and afterwards as a railway under the auspices of several different companies. The station and line closed on 7 December 1964 as recommended in the Beeching Report.
Llanwnda railway station served the village of Llanwnda, Gwynedd, Wales.
Llanberis railway station was located in Llanberis, Gwynedd, Wales. It was a short walk from the Llanberis station of the Snowdon Mountain Railway. It opened 1 July 1869, and closed for regular passenger services in 1930. But it was still used by summer excursion trains until 7 September 1962 and freight services until 3 September 1964.
Cwm-y-Glo railway station served the village of Cwm-y-glo, Gwynedd, Wales, at the north-west end of Llyn Padarn. The station was closed for regular passenger services in 1930 but trains passed through until September 1964.
Lôn Eifion is part of Lôn Las Cymru, the Welsh National Cycle Route, which is about 400 km (250 mi) long.
The Bangor and Carnarvon Railway was a railway company promoted to build a branch railway connecting Caernarfon with the main line at Bangor, in north-west Wales. It opened in 1852 as far as Port Dinorwic and was extended to Caernarfon later in the same year.
Carnarvon (Pant) was the temporary northern terminus of the Carnarvonshire Railway, located on the southern fringe of Caernarfon, Gwynedd, Wales.
Nantlle was a railway station located in Talysarn, a neighbouring village to Nantlle, in Gwynedd, Wales.
Carnarvon Castle railway station was opened in 1856 by the narrow gauge Nantlle Railway near the foot of what is today the Allt Y Castell which slopes down to Caernarfon's harbour area. It was the line's northern terminus and was the closest of Caernarfon's ultimately five stations to the historic town centre.
