Porthcawl railway station
Porthcawl | |
---|---|
![]() Porthcawl station in the 1940s | |
General information | |
Location | Porthcawl, Bridgend Wales |
Coordinates | 51°28′52″N 3°42′08″W / 51.4811°N 3.7021°W |
Platforms | 3 |
Other information | |
Status | Disused |
History | |
Original company | Duffryn Llynfi & Porthcawl Railway |
Key dates | |
1828 | Opened as tramway |
1865 | Converted to railway |
6 March 1916 | Rebuilt and resited |
9 September 1963 | Closed |
Porthcawl railway station served the seaside resort of Porthcawl in South Wales. It closed in 1963.
History
The first railway at Porthcawl was the 4 ft 7 in (1,397 mm) gauge Duffryn Llynfi & Porthcawl Railway (actually a tramway) which began construction in 1825 and opened in 1829. The tramway rails were laid on stone sleepers. It was built to carry minerals from South Wales to the harbour at Porthcawl.[1] It ran from Duffryn Llynfi near Maesteg via Tondu and Pyle and was extended to Bridgend in 1834.
The
By the early 20th Century, Porthcawl grew in importance as a destination for holiday traffic, and in 1916, the GWR rebuilt the station on a new site. Despite the fact that it had been built a mile nearer to the seafront, the new station was not universally popular; the building was a rather insubstantial structure built of wood and asbestos, and whilst the original station had possessed a footbridge, the GWR did not supply one for the new station, despite the rise from two to three platforms. Passengers using the remoter platforms were obliged to make a long detour via a link at the end of the platforms. A special gate was provided at the end of the departure platform for the use of day-trippers.[3] The original station's turntable was not replaced, but remained derelict on-site for many years. In the decades following the opening of the new station, passenger numbers remained high, with around 70,000 passengers using the station.[4]
The closure came in 1963 despite the fact that the branch was still well-used, and the move was very unpopular with local businesses and residents alike. Poor ticket sales from Porthcawl station itself were used to justify the closure, but the fact that most travelers bought their tickets to, rather than from Porthcawl (the ticket sale therefore recorded elsewhere) was ignored.
Preceding station | Disused railways | Following station | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Nottage Halt Line and station closed |
Great Western Railway Porthcawl branch |
Terminus |
Notes
- ^ a b "WalesOnline". Retrieved 22 March 2018.
- ^ "The History of Porthcawl Docks". Retrieved 22 March 2018.
- ISBN 9781846741722.
- ^ "Memories of Porthcawl". Retrieved 22 March 2018.