NORTH WALES COAST
RAILWAY :NOTICE BOARD
Rheilffordd arfordir gogledd Cymru: Hysbysfwrdd
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12 October 2026
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14 October. Welsh Highland Railway North Wales Group. Dave Kent – '"Here's one you might recall...?" Dave will give his perspective of rebuilding the WHR with a wealth of photographs to accompany his talk. He was involved from Day One and many may have also worked alongside him on it.'
November 2026
Thursday 5 November Clwyd Railway Circle "40 years of Railway in the Chester area" - Geoff Morris
11 November Welsh Highland Railway North Wales Group. Dave Waldren – ‘My View of Reconstructing the WHR.’
Friday 13 November Altrincham Electric Railway Preservation Society Tom Ingall "The Reunification of the Great Central Railway". The talk describes the plan to reunify the Great Central Railway (North) and the Great Central Railway preserved lines by building a new link in the centre of Loughborough. Tom is a BBC presenter who has been a volunteer at the Great Central Railway since the age of 14.
December 2027
Thursday 3 December Clwyd Railway Circle Ian Mainprize 'German Railway Development'
9 December Welsh Highland Railway North Wales Group – Mike Blackburn – The Chester & Holyhead Railway.
Wednesday 23 December Saphos
Trains "The Pennine Peaks Christmas Explorer"
Bangor to Hellifield circular tour. 2 LSL 47s
to/from Crewe, A4 60007 "Sir Nigel Gresley"
onwards.
January 2027
Friday 8 January Altrincham Electric Railway Preservation Society Jeremy Nicholls "100 Years of Trains to Audlem" and "Nantwich and the Railway". Contact Andrew Macfarlane, (0161) 928 9394)
February 2027
Friday 12 February Altrincham Electric Railway Preservation Society Chris Davies "The AERPS and the Last Years of the 1500 volts dc Altrincham Electrics". Chris is a Vice-President of the Society and he has been involved since the early days in the early 1970s. Contact Andrew Macfarlane, (0161) 928 9394
March 2027
Friday 12 March Altrincham Electric Railway Preservation Society Paul Shackcloth "People and Places 9". More images of the pre-1968 steam railway with at least one person visible. Contact Andrew Macfarlane, (0161) 928 9394 for confirmation)
For up-to-date North Wales information
join the North Wales Trains News group
North Wales Coast Railway website created and compiled by Charlie Hulme
[The other items usually in this column are temporally out of service for re-construction]
Contrast of front ends at Shrewsbury. Picture by Graham Breakwell
News Pictures
The Rail Head Treatment Train season began on Sunday 27 September. 3S71 the 19:32 from Coleham depot set off with just 97 304 and one set of tanks running to Machynlleth and back. Captured here by Graham Breakwell after return to Coleham on 28 September. 56 113 and 56 090 continued the usual circuit taking in routes to Bidston, Chester, Crewe and Holyhead.
RHTT out on the line on 3 October at Rhyl, 56 113 leading, 56 090 on the rear (Paul Hajdasz )
Colas 1Q08 New Measurement Train passing through platform 3 at Llandudno Junction on 2 October, making the long journey from Derby and eventually back to Crewe Gresty Road Western Sidings. 43 301 was leading back from Holyhead, 43301 in the back. (Paul Hajdasz)
Penmaenmawr (Greg Mape)
Coton Hill sidings 37607 on the front ready to leave with 3Q26 to Derby RTC at 22.04. The snowplough are having test runs in case we get any snow. Ten of these were built in the 1980s using the bogies of Class 40 or 45 locos. (Graham Breakwell).
Britannic doings
The Britannic Explorer seems to have become a weekly occurrence, With the Heart of Wales line for a week for engineering work it was rerouted onto the Marches Line with a stopover in Hereford.
66 748 St Michael's Mount led the train into Shrewsbury as usual with, appropriately, 66 744 “Heart of Wales” on the rear. 97 304 headed the train to Pwllheli double headed with 37 425 named Concrete Bob on one side and Sir Robert MacAlpine on the other. Seen here crossing onto the Cambrian line passing Sutton Bridge Junction signal box. 97 302 was on the rear (Graham Breakwell).
John Oates writes: 'On Tuesday 29 September on my arrival into Shrewsbury on the TfW service from Birmingham (2 x 197), the Britannic Explorer was in platform 4 with 66 744
"Heart of Wales" just detached from the south end, leaving to Bescot shortly after we arrived.
Then came the sound of 2 x class 37s coming from Coleham, 37 425 Concrete Bob in glorious Regional Railways colours and 97 304 Rheilffordd Talyllyn' Railway.
'I was even more surprised as I left to see another class 37 on the rear, 97 302 Ffestiniog & Welsh Highland Railways looking very smart after its repaint a few months ago. You may know more, but it seems the route from Llandrindod was closed, so the train had gone from
Moreton-on-Lugg to Hereford, then Hereford to Shrewsbury and onto its normal route.'
New Barriers
John Oakes reports that Shrewsbury has a set of the new '6-foot-tall security ticket barriers equipped with AI tailgating detection and breakthrough-resistant paddles to combat fare evasion'. An interesting feature is that the machine stamps coded letters on a card ticket to show that it has been used. Did the old barriers once do that?
DfT say "Passengers will benefit from a fairer railway with £33.4 million of funding to support the rollout of a range of gate types at stations which currently have none, including new taller gates to prevent barrier jumping and more of the standard waist-high gates currently used across Great Britain and on the London Underground"
Winter Blockage
More details have been given about the closures of the North Wales Coast Railways from Chester - Holyhead to including the Llandudno and Conway Valley branches from Saturday 9 January until Saturday 6 February 2027. For the first three weeks, the railway will be closed between Chester and Holyhead, including the Conwy Valley line and Llandudno Junction to Llandudno. During the fourth week, the closure will reduce to between Llandudno Junction and Holyhead.
The planned works include:
Renewing track through the Grade I-listed Conwy Tubular Railway Bridge, where the existing track dates back to 1978.
Major track and drainage improvements in Bodorgan Tunnel, replacing infrastructure dating back to 1972 and helping reduce the risk of flooding.
Track renewal and ground improvements at Penmaenbach, where sections of track were last renewed in 1986.
Track and points improvements at Holyhead and Llandudno.
Platform improvements at Llandudno Junction.
Work at four level crossings, east of Bangor.[In that area there are eight UWCs (User Worked Crossing): Aber Bull, Wig Farm, Wig, Tar'r Mebion Farm, Henfaes Farm, Pentre Ddu, Madryn Farm, Glan-y-Mor Elias. These private crossings consist of gates, and a telephone to ask the signaller for permission to cross. Some are fitted with red/green lights which add some extra safety, may be the work mention. It was a UWC crossing that was involved in the accident near Leominster last year.]
Around £1.4m of vegetation management across nine locations, alongside extensive maintenance throughout the route.
Two new fully accessible footbridges at Prestatyn and Abergele, supporting the closure of four high-risk level crossings.Rail replacement services will operate during the closure, with detailed travel arrangements expected to be confirmed in autumn 2026.
Cambrian scenes on 26 September - by Graham Breakwell
158 833 on 2J07 11:03 Machynlleth - Pwllheli approaching Penhelig taken from Picnic Island bridge with the Dovey estuary and “Trefri” with its is beautiful location and island as a spectacular backdrop.
2J19 18:00 Birmingham International - Pwllheli on the on the bridge over the Mawddach estuary with the foothills of Cader Idris beyond...
... then crossing the impressive and beautifully restored Barmouth Bridge.
Gravity train - pictures by Greg Mape
During events at the Ffestiniog Railway, they run a demonstration train with no Locomotive, just slate wagons that free wheel down hill, into Porthmadog.
Many staff sit on the top of the train to apply brakes when needed. Here is a gravity train passing through the level crossing at Penrhyndeudraeth on 2 October.
Prince crosses the level crossing at Penrhyndeudraeth. Greg noticed this house for sale inside the crossing. Any takers?
From Dave Sallery's Archive
37 407 Loch Long and 37 421 The Kingsman Penmaenmawr, 14 July 1994. 37 026 has just passed on the up line with a ballast.
37 408, Prestatyn, 12 August 1985. On test after rebuild to a 37/4 and returning to Crewe Works. 37 408 was cut up at EMR Kingsbury in January 2008.
37 669 on test and returning to Crewe, 19 August 1987. 37 669 is currently with West Coast Railways.
37 796, Prestatyn, 31 October 1986. Loco on test from Crewe. 37 796 was cut up at CF Booth Rotherham in February 2009.
47 413 heads a line of withdrawn locos at Scunthorpe Anchor works, 05 September 1993.
47 473, in 'large logo' blue, on a short ballast train from Penmaenmawr, 22 June 1989.
Looking Back: 1972 part 6 - David Pool
Returning from my holiday on the South Coast, on 1 July 1972 I visited Charlbury, on the Western Region main line between Oxford and Worcester. Like many stations in the 1970s, it had been reduced to a single platform, with the passing loop removed. The 17:19 Didcot to Moreton in the Marsh was formed by Pressed Steel Class 117, W51348/W59500/W51390. Today the passing loop has been restored, and Charlbury has two platforms again.
I called at the Severn Valley Railway in Bridgnorth on the following day. The SVR had been acquiring Industrial locomotives, and three were conveniently positioned for a photograph. No.2047 Warwickshire was the last locomotive built by Manning Wardle in 1926, and had worked at the Rugby Portland Cement Company. The red diesel was D577 Mary, built by Hudswell Clarke in 1932 for Beswicks Limeworks in Hindlow. It was found to be rather underpowered for much work on the SVR, and is today on the Middleton Railway. The third locomotive was built by Hunslet in 1898 and used on the railways of the Manchester Ship Canal Company, where it was No.14 St. John. Eventually it was sold to ICI for use at their Blackley Works, where it was named The Lady Armaghdale.
A week later I was in Upton, where an Iron Ore train from Bidston Dock to Shotton was being hauled by 1851 (later 47 429). The headcode 9F39 is interesting, in that the code 9 did not refer to a Pendolino in those days!
On 14 July 1972 I was in the North East, where I planned to photograph the Riverside Branch on Tyneside, which ran from Heaton to Percy Main alongside the River Tyne. This was originally part of the Tyneside Electrics system, but by 1972 the electrics had been replaced by diesel units on both sides of the Tyne. Passenger services on the Riverside Branch were now only at peak hours, although some freight services remained. A Class 101 unit was working the 16:24 Newcastle to the Coast, and arriving at Walker station. The leading car was E50138.
Willington Quay was the focus of the freight workings, and 6795 (later 37 095) was departing with the headcode 6P03. At that time I was not able to identify the working, and would be interested to know what the destination would have been. The passenger services were withdrawn in 1973, and freight lasted until 1988, but unlike the other Tyneside lines the Branch did not become part of the Metro system, and much of the trackbed is now a Cycleway.
On the following day I was at Morpeth, where 1541 (later 47 201) was passing through the station with the 07:20 York to Aberdeen.
I later headed South to see what may have changed at South Shields. The station still retained its imposing roof, and another Class 101 E50147 was about to depart with the 17:02 to Newcastle. This site would be unrecognisable today, since the Metro has now provided a totally new station.
On 16 July 1972 I was photographing at Hexham, where 6770 (later 37 070) was heading East with a coal train, headcode 7T05. Again, I would welcome any information on this working.
Looking in the other direction, a Class 101 unit E56975/E51437 was arriving with the 13:30 departure from Newcastle. The footbridge and signal box have survived today, as have the platform buildings, thanks to the Grade II listing of this station and signal box.
A week later I was in Welshpool, where the 09:00 Birmingham to Barmouth was another Class 101 unit, car M50327 leading. A headcode 1J65 is displayed in addition to the B2, which seems to be a little unusual for the Cambrian lines. Perhaps it was a Special Excursion?
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