Maesteg Line

The Maesteg Line is a commuter rail line in South Wales from Bridgend to Maesteg. Services usually operate hourly from Maesteg to Cardiff Central via the South Wales Main Line.

Maesteg Line
An Arriva Trains Wales Class 150 stands at Maesteg with a terminating service from Cheltenham
Overview
Owner	Network Rail
Locale	Bridgend County Borough
Termini	Bridgend Maesteg
Stations	7
Service
Type	Heavy rail
System	National Rail
Operator(s)	Transport for Wales Rail
Rolling stock	Class 150, Class 153, Class 158, Class 197' DMUs
History
Opened	28 June 1866; 158 years ago (1866-06-28)
Technical
Line length	8 miles 29 chains (13.5 km)[1]
Number of tracks	Single track
Track gauge	4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Electrification	None
Route map (Click to expand) Show map Legend Llynvi & Ogmore Railway to Caerau Maesteg Maesteg (Ewenny Road) Garth Troedyrhiew Garth Llangynwyd Ogmore Valley Railway & Garw Valley Railway Llynvi & Ogmore Railway & Port Talbot Railway & Docks Company Tondu Aberkenfig Sarn Wildmill South Wales Main Line to Swansea Bridgend South Wales Main Line to Cardiff Central Vale of Glamorgan Line to Cardiff Central Show route diagram

Electrification by 2019 was announced in the Department for Transport's High Level Output Specification of 2012,^[2] but later cancelled.^[3]

History

The Llynfi and Ogmore Railway (L&OVR) was formed on 28 June 1866 (itself the amalgamation of earlier lines); a standard gauge line as opposed to the main line. On 1 July 1873 the GWR took over the L&OVR.

The line from Bridgend originally operated beyond Maesteg through Caerau and the Cymmer Tunnel, known locally as the 'Gwdihw', to passenger stations in Cymmer, known as Cymmer General and further to Abergwynfi. The lines also connected collieries in Abergwynfi and Glyncorrwg. Junctions at both Tondu and Cymmer connected with east–west routes across the Llynfi and Afan valleys.

The Maesteg branch was closed to passenger trains in 1970 (though it remained in use for coal traffic until 1988), and the link with the Afan Valley was lost due to the closure of the Cymmer Tunnel.

A long campaign in the late 1980s and early 90s, resulted in the reopening of the line in 1992 as far as Maesteg by British Rail and Mid Glamorgan County Council. The new stations and line were officially opened by Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester and a plaque was unveiled at Maesteg station.

The railway north of Maesteg continued to exist until 2004, however it was removed as part of the Maesteg Washery reclamation scheme. The track to the north of Llynfi North Junction, including the former Nantyffyllon and Caerau stations, have been part of a major housing developments. Reconnection with Cymmer (Afan Valley) is financially unviable to reinstate;– the tunnel portal is still visible at the Caerau end but it is completely buried at the Cymmer end.

Today the line is operated by Transport for Wales Rail on services from Cheltenham Spa to Maesteg via Cardiff Central and Bridgend, and repeated from Maesteg to Cheltenham Spa, as part of the Valley Lines network, in February 2024 Transport for Wales started running their Class 197 Trains on the line along with the soon to be phased out British Rail Class 150, Class 153 and Class 158 DMUs.^[4] TfW Rail replaced the previous franchises, Arriva Trains Wales who ran the service December 2003-October 2018 and Wales & Borders in December 2003.

References

1. Yonge, John; Padgett, David (August 2010) [1989]. Bridge, Mike (ed.). Railway Track Diagrams 3: Western (5th ed.). Bradford on Avon: Trackmaps. maps 23A & 29B. ISBN 978-0-9549866-6-7.
2. Department for Transport's High Level Output Specification 2012
3. "The cancellation of rail electrification in South Wales" (PDF). House of Commons. Retrieved 1 August 2024.
4. "Brand new trains on the Maesteg Line". 19 February 2024.

• Historical notes are taken from The Railway Magazine July 1955, pp 445–454

External links

• Media related to Maesteg Line at Wikimedia Commons