Cowbridge and Aberthaw Railway
| Llantrisant-Aberthaw line | |
|---|---|
| Overview | |
| Locale | Vale of Glamorgan |
| Termini |
Pontyclun Aberthaw |
| Stations | 10 |
| Operation | |
| Opened | 1865 |
| Closed | 1965 |
| Technical | |
| Line length | 12 mi (19 km) |
| Track gauge | 4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) |
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The Llantrisant – Aberthaw line was a railway line built in two parts.
The Cowbridge Railway was a locally promoted railway line in South Wales, intended to connect the town to the nearby main line network at Llantrisant. The company was desperately short of money to construct the line, and a subscription of £10,000 from the Taff Vale Railway towards the construction costs ensured alignment to that company's system, so that Pontypridd, and not Cardiff, was the destination of through passenger trains. The line opened in 1865 and operated as a through line from Pontypridd in association with the Llantrisant and Taff Vale Junction Railway. The Company was always impoverished and from 1876 leased its line to the Taff Vale Railway. The TVR absorbed the Company in 1889.
High quality limestone workings at Aberthaw encouraged thoughts of a Cowbridge and Aberthaw Railway. This opened in 1892, and was absorbed by the Taff Vale Railway in 1895. The Cowbridge and the Aberthaw sections were operated as a single entity.
The Taff Vale Railway introduced railmotors, which it called "motor cars", on the lines in 1905 and although they were successful, the lines remained loss-making. The passenger service from Cowbridge to Aberthaw was discontinued in 1932; that from Llantrisant to Cowbridge in 1951. A mineral working with a private siding remained in operation until 1975, but when that closed the line ceased to have any railway activity.
The Taff Vale Railway was planned to bring the iron production of works at Merthyr and Dowlais, as well as coal from certain collieries, to the docks at Cardiff for onward shipment to market.
It opened its main line in two stages, in 1840 and 1841; it was built on the standard gauge. It was immediately successful, and at the same time coal mining enjoyed a massive increase in volume in the area, so that coal became the principal traffic. This encouraged numerous further branch lines and colliery connections, and at the same time the railway encouraged the opening of new mines.
The South Wales Railway was promoted in 1843, to connect the Great Western Railway network at Gloucester to Milford Haven; it was to be a broad gauge line. Its route was the matter of considerable discussion, and at one stage it was assumed it would pass through Cowbridge. However the route as finally determined ran near Llantrisant, about five miles north of Cowbridge; the South Wales Railway opened in several stages but this section was opened on 18 June 1850. The mail road coach service through Cowbridge was almost immediately withdrawn, and the importance of Cowbridge was much diminished.
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Wikipedia