North Llanrwst railway station
General information | |||||
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Location | Llanrwst, Conwy County Borough Wales | ||||
Coordinates | 53°08′38″N 3°48′11″W / 53.144°N 3.803°W | ||||
Grid reference | SH795622 | ||||
Managed by | Transport for Wales Rail | ||||
Platforms | 2 | ||||
Other information | |||||
Station code | NLR | ||||
Classification | DfT category F2 | ||||
History | |||||
Original company | Conway and Llanrwst Railway | ||||
Pre-grouping | London and North Western Railway | ||||
Post-grouping | London, Midland and Scottish Railway | ||||
Key dates | |||||
17 June 1863 | Station opened as Llanrwst | ||||
6 April 1868 | Station resited | ||||
April 1884 | Renamed Llanrwst and Trefriw | ||||
6 May 1974 | Renamed Llanrwst | ||||
29 July 1989 | Renamed Llanrwst North | ||||
December 2004[1] | Renamed North Llanrwst | ||||
Passengers | |||||
2019/20 | 3,144 | ||||
2020/21 | 92 | ||||
2021/22 | 1,420 | ||||
2022/23 | 2,414 | ||||
2023/24 | 3,362 | ||||
Listed Building – Grade II | |||||
Feature | North Llanrwst Station (Main Building) | ||||
Designated | 19 February 1993 | ||||
Reference no. | 16520[2] | ||||
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North Llanrwst railway station (Welsh: Gogledd Llanrwst) 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.
In September 2024, it was confirmed that Transport for Wales would fund renaming the station as "North Llanrwst and Trefriw".[3][4]
History
[edit]The station and its goods yard were opened on 17 June 1863 as the Llanrwst terminus of the Conway and Llanrwst Railway[5] that was taken over by the London and North Western Railway (LNWR) in 1867 and extended to Betws-y-Coed in 1869. To accommodate the southward extension, the station was resited on 6 April 1868. This station was renamed Llanrwst and Trefriw in April 1884[5] following the formal opening of the Gower pedestrian road to Trefriw in May 1881,[6] reverting to its original name Llanrwst during the British Railways era, on 6 May 1974.[5][7] The grade-II station buildings are largely intact, though mostly disused, and there is a working signal box north of the station at which trains must stop to exchange tokens. The extensive station yard is now used for light industry.
The platforms heights here are low and wooden boarding steps were provided on both platforms for many years – easy access ramps have now been fitted to improve accessibility on each side. Shelters are provided on both platforms, along with digital CIS displays a pay phone and timetable posters to offer train running information. The platforms are linked via a barrow crossing, so mobility-impaired and wheelchair users are advised not to use this without assistance.[8]
The village of Trefriw (noted for its spa, first used by the Romans), is still served by the station by way of the Gower suspension footbridge over the River Conwy, a rural walk of about one mile.
Llanrwst has a second railway station, located more centrally in the town, and this was opened on 29 July 1989; to allow the new station to take the name Llanrwst, this station was renamed Llanrwst North on the same day;[5] it has since been amended to North Llanrwst.
Services
[edit]Five southbound and six northbound trains call on request Mon-Sat (approximately every three hours), with four trains each way on Sundays.[9]
In March 2019, however, services were suspended and replaced by buses due to major flood damage to the track and formation at multiple locations on the line caused by Storm Gareth on 16 March 2019. Repairs took several months to complete,[10] and services resumed on 18 July 2019, ahead of the 2019 National Eisteddfod which was being staged in Llanrwst. Additional trains were provided for the Eisteddfod, terminating at North Llanrwst, and a special steam charter was run to celebrate the line's re-opening.[11] Further storm damage to the north (this time from Storm Ciara) in February 2020 resulted in services again being suspended until the line was reopened on 28 September 2020.[12]
Preceding station | National Rail | Following station | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Dolgarrog | Transport for Wales Rail Conwy Valley line |
Llanrwst |
References
[edit]- ^ "North Llanrwst Rail Station". Cylex UK.
- ^ Cadw. "North Llanrwst Station (Main Building) (3607)". National Historic Assets of Wales. Retrieved 27 October 2021.
- ^ Community secure historic rename of local railway station Janet Finch Saunders AM
- ^ Why station on beautiful North Wales rail route will change name back after 50 years Daily Post
- ^ a b c d Butt, R.V.J. (1995). The Directory of Railway Stations. Yeovil: Patrick Stephens Ltd. p. 146. ISBN 1-85260-508-1. R508.
- ^ A History of Trefriw, Tony Ellis, 2021
- ^ Slater, J.N., ed. (July 1974). "Notes and News: Stations renamed by LMR". Railway Magazine. 120 (879). London: IPC Transport Press Ltd: 363. ISSN 0033-8923.
- ^ North Llanrwst station facilities National Rail Enquiries
- ^ Table 102 National Rail timetable, December 2019
- ^ Flood damaged Conwy Valley line could be closed for months itv.com news article 25 March 2019; retrieved 26 March 2019
- ^ Special Timetable for the Eistedffod in Llanrwst railwaydata.co.uk Retrieved 20 August 2019
- ^ "Conwy Valley Line opens after £2.2m flood repairs". BBC, 28 September 2020. 27 September 2020.
Further reading
[edit]- Mitchell, Vic; Smith, Keith (2010). Bala to Llandudno. West Sussex: Middleton Press. fig. 89. ISBN 9781906008871. OCLC 668198724.
External links
[edit]- Train times and station information for North Llanrwst railway station from National Rail
- Conwy Valley Railway
- Llanrwst
- Railway stations in Conwy County Borough
- DfT Category F2 stations
- Railway request stops in Great Britain
- Former London and North Western Railway stations
- Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1863
- Railway stations in Great Britain closed in 1868
- Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1868
- Railway stations served by Transport for Wales Rail
- Grade II listed railway stations in Wales