| Vale of Rheidol Railway Rheilffordd Cwm Rheidol | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Locomotive No. 8 Llywelyn on the climb to Devil's Bridge terminus | |
| Locale | Ceredigion, Wales |
| Terminus | Aberystwyth Devil's Bridge |
| Coordinates | 52°24′40″N 4°04′45″W / 52.41114°N 4.07909°W |
| Commercial operations | |
| Name | Vale of Rheidol Light Railway |
| Built by | Engineer: James Szlumper |
| Original gauge | 1 ft 11+1⁄2 in (597 mm) |
| Preserved operations | |
| Owned by | Phyllis Rampton Narrow Gauge Railway Trust |
| Operated by | Vale of Rheidol Railway Limited |
| Stations | 4 stations and 5 halts |
| Length | 11+3⁄4 miles (18.91 km) |
| Preserved gauge | 1 ft 11+3⁄4 in (603 mm) |
| Commercial history | |
| Opened | August 1902 (freight only) 22 December 1902 (passenger) |
| 1913 | Taken over by Cambrian Railways |
| 1922 | Great Western Railway Grouping |
| 1948 | Became part of British Railways |
| 1968 | Became the last steam operating line on British Rail |
| Preservation history | |
| 1989 | Privatised |
| Headquarters | Aberystwyth |
| Website | |
| www.rheidolrailway.co.uk | |
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The Vale of Rheidol Railway (Welsh: Rheilffordd Cwm Rheidol) is a 1 ft 11+3⁄4 in (603 mm) narrow gauge heritage railway in Ceredigion, Wales, between Aberystwyth and Devil's Bridge; a journey of 11+3⁄4 miles (18.9 km).[1]
It opened in 1902 and, from the withdrawal of main line steam on British Rail in 1968 until privatisation in 1989,[2] it was the sole steam-operated line on the 1948 nationalised British Rail network. It was one of the first parts of British Rail to be privatised. Unlike most other preserved railways in the United Kingdom, the Vale of Rheidol Railway did not have a period of closure between its being part of the national rail system and becoming a heritage railway, and so has operated a continuous service for residents and tourists.