General information | |||||
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Location | Dolgarrog, Conwy Wales | ||||
Coordinates | 53°11′10″N3°49′23″W / 53.186°N 3.823°W | ||||
Grid reference | SH782670 | ||||
Managed by | Transport for Wales Rail | ||||
Platforms | 1 | ||||
Other information | |||||
Station code | DLG | ||||
Classification | DfT category F2 | ||||
Passengers | |||||
2019/20 | 362 | ||||
2020/21 | 102 | ||||
2021/22 | 778 | ||||
2022/23 | 634 | ||||
2023/24 | 2,060 | ||||
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Dolgarrog railway station is an unstaffed halt,and a request stop,on the Conwy Valley Line from Llandudno Junction to Blaenau Ffestiniog.
The station is located on the east bank of the River Conwy just across the A470 road from Plas Maenan,which was the home of Henry Jack,the Managing Director of the Aluminium Corporation from 1916 to 1927,together with its associated enterprises including the Ffestiniog Railway and the Welsh Highland Railway. Plas Maenan is now a small country house hotel and restaurant with views across the valley.
The station was built by the LNWR in 1916 to provide sidings and an interchange facility with the Dolgarrog Railway,a short-standard gauge industrial line,built by the Aluminium Corporation to serve Dolgarrog village and the aluminium works that are about a mile from the station on the west bank of the river. The aluminium works closed in 2007,and became the site of Adventure Parc Snowdonia,an inland surfing lagoon and adventure park,which itself closed in 2023.
The industrial line crossed the river by a substantial girder bridge. The bridge,long used as a footbridge,and the only way to reach the station from the village of Dolgarrog,is now slated for closure. [1] It was initially equipped with two locomotives,ten 12 ton wagons,and two passenger carriages. Morning and evening passenger services were free and operated from 1917 to 1932. Goods traffic,which was heavy during the war,continued but declined in the 1950s. The line closed in 1960 and was lifted in 1964.
The station was closed on 2 November 1964 but was reopened on 14 June 1965. [2]
The station is unmanned and has a single platform,with basic amenities only (waiting shelter and timetable poster board). It also has a digital CIS display like other stations on the branch. Access to the platform is via a foot crossing and path from the A470 road. [3]
The station became the least used station in Wales for the period 2017–18,mainly due to Sugar Loaf station increasing its usage by more than sevenfold from the previous year. The previous low usage for Sugar Loaf,228 passengers for 2016–17,seems to have made it popular. It saw over 1,800 passengers for 2017–18,whilst Dolgarrog saw a fall of almost 40% passenger usage to 612. [4]
This section needs to be updated.(March 2021) |
Transport for Wales Rail operates five southbound and six northbound trains that call on request Mon-Sat (approximately every three hours), with three trains each way on Sundays between May and early September. [5] Following serious flood damage to the line in multiple locations in March 2019, services from this station were suspended for four months and replaced by buses whilst major infrastructure repairs were carried out. [6] Dolgarrog was one of two stations severely damaged by the floodwaters. The damaged platform was removed and the line reopened to traffic on 18 July 2019, but with Dolgarrog station remaining closed. On 22 November 2019 the line closed again for three weeks for a new platform to be built at Dolgarrog and rock bolts to be installed in Ffestiniog Tunnel, reopening on 15 December. Further damage to the line occurred in February 2020, this time by Storm Ciara with services again being suspended until the line was reopened on 28 September 2020. [7]
Preceding station | National Rail | Following station | ||
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Transport for Wales |
The Conwy Valley line is a railway line in north-west Wales. It 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. Although only a little over 27 miles (43 km) between Llandudno and Blaenau Ffestiniog, the journey takes over one hour, largely due to the sinuous and steeply graded nature of the route taken. Most of the stations along the line are treated as request stops.
Llandudno Junction is a station serving the village of Llandudno Junction on the North Wales Main Line between Crewe and Holyhead. The station is managed by Transport for Wales Rail, although Avanti West Coast services also stop there. It is a junction for trains to Llandudno and the Conwy Valley line.
Transport in Wales is heavily influenced by the country's geography. Wales is predominantly hilly or mountainous, and the main settlements lie on the coasts of north and south Wales, while mid Wales and west Wales are lightly populated. The main transport corridors are east–west routes, many continuing eastwards into England.
Betws-y-coed railway station is on the Conwy Valley Line, which runs between Llandudno and Blaenau Ffestiniog. It is situated 15+1⁄2 miles (24.9 km) south of Llandudno Junction.
Llandudno railway station serves the seaside town of Llandudno in North Wales. It is the terminus of a 3 miles (4.8 km) long branch line from Llandudno Junction on the North Wales Coast Line, between Crewe and Holyhead. The station is managed by Transport for Wales Rail, who operate all trains serving it. Llandudno Victoria station, the lower terminus of the Great Orme Tramway, is a 15-minute walk from the main station.
Deganwy railway station serves the town of Deganwy, Wales, and is the only intermediate station located on the Llandudno branch line from Llandudno Junction to Llandudno.
Glan Conwy railway station is on the east bank of the River Conwy on the A470 road in the centre of the village of Llansanffraid Glan Conwy, Wales and is located on the Llandudno Junction to Blaenau Ffestiniog Conwy Valley Line. There are through services to Blaenau Ffestiniog and Llandudno.
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Roman Bridge railway station is a request stop passenger station in the Lledr Valley, Wales, on the Conwy Valley Line from Llandudno Junction to Blaenau Ffestiniog, which is operated by Transport for Wales Rail.
Pont-y-Pant railway station is a single platform passenger station in the Lledr Valley, Wales, on the Conwy Valley line from Llandudno Junction to Blaenau Ffestiniog, which is operated by Transport for Wales Rail. The station house is well maintained and used as a private dwelling.
Dolwyddelan railway station is a passenger station in the Lledr Valley, Wales, on the Conwy Valley Line from Llandudno Junction to Blaenau Ffestiniog, which is operated by Transport for Wales Rail. It is located at Pentre-Bont across the river a few hundred yards from the centre of Dolwyddelan. The station is unmanned.
Llanrwst railway station is in Denbigh Street near the centre of the market town of Llanrwst, Wales, and close to the local bus termini in Watling Street. It is situated on the Conwy Valley Line from Llandudno Junction to Blaenau Ffestiniog 12 miles (19 km) south of the former and was opened by British Rail in 1989. The town's original station 1⁄2 mile (0.80 km) to the north is now called North Llanrwst.
North Llanrwst railway station is the only train passing station on the Conwy Valley line between Llandudno Junction and Blaenau Ffestiniog in Wales. The station has had several previous names, including Llanrwst and Trefriw, Llanrwst and Llanrwst North. This station is also a request stop.
Tal-y-Cafn railway station is located at Tal-y-Cafn, Wales, on the Conwy Valley Line from Llandudno Junction to Blaenau Ffestiniog.
The Bala and Festiniog Railway was a 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in, standard gauge, railway backed by the Great Western Railway (GWR) in north-west Wales. It connected Bala with Blaenau Ffestiniog.
Llansanffraid Glan Conwy, usually shortened to Glan Conwy, is a village, community and electoral ward in Conwy County Borough, Wales. The name translates from the Welsh as Church of St Ffraid on the bank of the River Conwy. The village was founded in the 5th century and in the past had a marine-based economy, but it is now largely residential. The population was 2,290 in 2001, reducing to 2,196 at the 2011 census. It includes the village of Pentrefelin.
Maenan is a rural settlement in Conwy, Wales, located approximately 4 miles to the north of Llanrwst and 3 miles to the south of the village of Eglwysbach. The population of the area is approximately 300 people, and more than 75% of the population are Welsh speakers. Maenan shares a community council with the nearby village of Llanddoged. The A470 trunk road passes through Maenan. The 2001 census shows that the villages of Llanddoged and Maenan had a combined population of 574.
Blaenau Ffestiniog North was the London and North Western Railway's (LNWR's) second passenger station in Blaenau Ffestiniog, then in Merionethshire, now in Gwynedd, Wales.
The Llandudno branch line is a three-mile railway branch to the town from the main line at Llandudno Junction, Wales. It was opened in 1858, and it encouraged the development of the town as a tourist and holiday destination. Due to the popularity of the town, the station facilities at Llandudno station were progressively improved. Deganwy, on the branch line, was for some time a useful port.