Brecon Mountain Railway
Rheilffordd Mynydd Brycheiniog | |
|---|---|
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| 1908-built German 0-6-2WTT Graf Schwerin-Löwitz and American-style carriages. | |
| Locale | Merthyr Tydfil, Wales |
| Terminus | Pant |
| Commercial operations | |
| Name | Brecon Mountain Railway |
| Built by | Brecon and Merthyr Tydfil Junction Railway |
| Original gauge | 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge |
| Preserved operations | |
| Owned by | Brecon Mountain Railway Ltd |
| Operated by | Brecon Mountain Railway Ltd |
| Stations | 4 |
| Length | 5 miles (8.0 km) [1] |
| Preserved gauge | 1 ft 11 3⁄4 in (603 mm) |
| Commercial history | |
| Opened | 1980 |
| Preservation history | |
| Brecon & Merthyr Tydfil Junction Railway | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The Brecon Mountain Railway (Welsh: Rheilffordd Mynydd Brycheiniog) is a 1 ft 11 3⁄4 in (603 mm) narrow gauge tourist railway that runs through the Brecon Beacons along the full length of the Pontsticill Reservoir and uphill passing the nearby upper (Pentwyn) reservoir to Torpantau.
The BMR, is located three miles (4.8 km) north of the town of Merthyr Tydfil, Mid-Glamorganshire, South-East Wales.
Route of the BMR
The line, runs along part of the trackbed of the northern section of the former 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge Brecon and Merthyr Railway from Pant to a new station at Torpantau, via Pontsticill and Dolygaer Loop, A total of approximately 5 miles (8.0 km)s in length.
With this, it has taken the BMR just short of the southern entrance to the 667yd long Torpantau tunnel, the highest railway tunnel in Great Britain,[2] that carried the original line through the hills along the side of Glyn Collwn to Brecon.
One of the benefits of the line, and a condition of the planning permission, is that tourists can access and experience remote parts of the Brecon Beacons National Park without driving their cars through it.[3] Car parking for railway passengers is only available at Pant Station, outside the National Park.
The Brecon Mountain Railway is a fellow member of the Great Little Trains of Wales.
History
Construction of the BMR started in 1978, with the grant of a Light Railway Order in 1980.[4] Track laying between Pant and Pontsticill took place in 1979-80. At Pontsticill the station house was renovated, the old waiting room was converted into a small workshop and a storage shed was built. 7 bridges were repaired or replaced. The railway opened to passengers in June 1980 using the engine Sybil and one carriage.
Between 1982 and 1996 a large station and workshop was built at Pant. This provides passenger facilities including toilets, cafe, shop and booking office as well as the extensive workshop used to build and maintain the railway locomotives, carriages and wagons.
The railway was extended from Pontsticill a further 1 1⁄2 miles (2.4 km) to Dol-y-Gaer which opened in 1995. The railway was further extended to Torpantau, just short of the southern entrance to the Torpantau Tunnel with passenger services commencing 1 April 2014.
Stations of the BMR
- Pant railway station - perfect starting point of the BMR.
- Pontsticill railway station - located to adjacent reservoir of the same name.
- Dol-Y-Gaer - passing loop only.
- Torpantau railway station - current northern terminus of the BMR.
Locomotives
Full list of steam locomotives at the site:[5]
| Builder | Works No. | Date | Type | Name or Number | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Baldwin | 15511 | 1897 | 2-6-2 | 1 | Undergoing restoration in the workshops. |
| Baldwin | 61269 | 1930 | 4-6-2 | 2 | Operational. Originally built for the Eastern Province Cement Company in Port Elizabeth, South Africa. Acquired by the Brecon Mountain Railway around 1990, and restored to full working order in 1997.[6] |
| Baldwin | Original was No. 23 | 2-6-2 | 3 | Original locomotive scrapped in 1936. A replica is being constructed in the workshops from the original drawings. | |
| Baldwin | Original was No. 10. | 2-4-4T | 4 | Original locomotive scrapped in 1936. A replica is being constructed in the workshops from the original drawings. | |
| Brecon Mountain Railway | 001 | 1987 | 0-6-0DH | Operational. | |
| De Winton | 1894 | 0-4-0VBT | Pendyffryn | On display but is in working order. | |
| Henschel | 29587 | 1957 | 2-8-2 | 146 (SAR NG15 Class) | Stored out of use. |
| Hunslet Engine Co. | 827 | 1903 | 0-4-0ST | Sybil | On display but is in working order. |
| Jung | 1261 | 1908 | 0-6-2WT+T | Graf Schwerin-Löwitz 99-3553 | Operational. |
| Redstone | 1905 | 0-4-0VBTT | On display but is in working order. | ||
| Wickham | 10943 | 1976 | 2w-2PMR | Operational. | |
| Kambarka | TU7-1698 | 1981 | 4w-4wDH | The loco came from a Peat Railway at Seda, in Latvia.[7] | |
| Kambarka | TU7E-2426[8] | 1985 | 4w-4wDH | The loco came from a Tatra Electric Railway, in Slovakia.[9] |
See also
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Brecon Mountain Railway. |
- British narrow gauge railways
- List of British heritage and private railways
- List of closed railway lines in Great Britain
References
- ↑ Jacobs (Ed.), Gerald (2005). Railway Track Diagrams Book 3: Western. Trackmaps, Bradford upon Avon. ISBN 0-9549866-1-X.
- ↑ www.british-heritage-railways.co.uk Accessed 18 December 2012
- ↑ www.narrow-gauge-pleasure.co.uk accessed 18 December 2012.
- ↑ https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/47821/page/5222/data.pdf Notice of Light Railway Order application, 1979
- ↑ UK Locos - Preserved, Private, Hired & Industrial Locos
- ↑ http://www.breconmountainrailway.co.uk/locomotives.html
- ↑ http://www.philt.org.uk/Narrow-Gauge-Railways/Welsh-Narrow-Gauge/i-3tXQwNZ/
- ↑ http://www.uzkorozchodky.hys.cz/existlok/tu7e/tu7e_001.php
- ↑ http://www.zeleznicny.net/modules/xcgal/displayimage.php?pid=25932&album=162
External links
Coordinates: 51°48′33″N 3°22′02″W / 51.8093°N 3.36731°W