Blaenavon High Level railway station

Blaenavon High Level
Station on heritage railway
Blaenavon High Level in September 2015
General information
LocationBlaenavon, Torfaen
Wales
Coordinates51°46′07″N 3°05′08″W / 51.7686°N 3.0855°W / 51.7686; -3.0855
Grid referenceSO251083
Owned byLondon, Midland and Scottish Railway
Managed byPontypool and Blaenavon Railway
Platforms2
History
Pre-groupingLondon and North Western Railway
Key dates
18 December 1869Opened
5 May 1941[1][2]Closed
May 2010Reopened by the P&BR Preservation Society

Blaenavon High Level is a railway station on the preserved Pontypool and Blaenavon Railway, serving the World Heritage Site and town of Blaenavon, south Wales.

It is currently the southernmost terminus of the P&BR, reopened thanks to an Order under the Transport and Works Act 1992 to extend and operate its line from the Whistle Inn halt in the north to the site of Blaenavon (High Level) some two miles to the south.

Originally the station was simply called 'Blaenavon'. The "High Level" suffix came after the 1948 nationalisation to differentiate it from Blaenavon Low Level – the other Blaenavon station, which was previously operated by the GWR.

In its time Blaenavon (High Level) station had up and down platforms. The up platform contained the main station buildings and was approached by a wide road providing for vehicular access. Also, on the up side was a loco shed and a goods shed. The down platform was built with a stone front wall and relatively narrow stone coping stones along its edge, behind the copers the majority of the platform was of ash or macadam stone.

The platform was approached from the main road by a steep footpath and the two platforms were joined by a barrow crossing. The platform contained a sizeable waiting room, and a notably tall signal box. The waiting room was fronted by blue diamond-cut setts rather than ash, whilst the area in front of the signal box was clad with wooden planks overlaying a cavity through which the rods and wires were channelled.

  1. ^ Quick, M E (2002). Railway passenger stations in England, Scotland and Wales – a chronology. Richmond: Railway and Canal Historical Society. p. 83. OCLC 931112387.
  2. ^ Butt, R.V.J. (1995). The Directory of Railway Stations. Yeovil: Patrick Stephens Ltd. p. 37. ISBN 1-85260-508-1. R508.