Dinas railway station

This article is about the station in the village of Dinas. For the former station of this name in Blaenau Festiniog, see Dinas railway station (Festiniog Railway).

Dinas
Station on heritage railway
Welsh Highland train to Waunfawr at Dinas 2003
General information
LocationDinas, Llanwnda, Gwynedd
Wales
Coordinates53°06′13″N 4°16′37″W / 53.10366°N 4.27682°W / 53.10366; -4.27682
Grid referenceSH476586
Owned byFestiniog Railway Company
Managed byWelsh Highland Railway
Platforms2 (originally 2 standard and 1 narrow gauge)[1][2]
History
Original companyLNWR
Key dates
14 September 1877Opened as "Dinas Junction"[3][4]
26 September 1936Narrow gauge closed[5]
1938Renamed "Dinas (Caerns)"[6][7]
10 September 1951Standard gauge closed
11 October 1997Re-opened (as narrow gauge, named "Dinas")
Original NWNGR station building of 1877

Dinas is a station on the narrow gauge Welsh Highland Railway, which was built in 1877 as the North Wales Narrow Gauge Railways Moel Tryfan Undertaking to carry dressed slate for trans-shipment to the LNWR. Passenger services ceased on 26 September 1936 until which time Dinas had been a joint station, known as Dinas Junction with the LNWR and later the LMS.[8] In 1951, British Railways closed their part of the station but the line through the station remained open until the line from Caernarvon to Afon Wen was closed in 1964.[6] The trackbed was subsequently developed as the Lôn Eifion tourist cycle route.

When the station was reopened on 11 October 1997, it was as the southern temporary terminus of the extended and soon to be restored Welsh Highland Railway from Caernarfon. Following reconstruction of the trackbed, the line was reopened on its original trackbed, in stages; on 7 August 2000 to Waunfawr; in 2003 to Rhyd Ddu; through the Aberglaslyn Pass to Beddgelert and Hafod-y-lyn in 2009; 26 May 2010 for Pont Croesor and finally on 4 January 2011 to Porthmadog. The official opening for the completed line was 20 April 2011. The train services are operated by the Festiniog Railway Company by its Welsh Highland Railway subsidiary.

At Dinas, the new narrow gauge platforms are built on the site of the former standard gauge platforms. Two buildings survive from the North Wales Narrow Gauge Railways era, namely the former goods shed and the original station building which has been carefully restored. Dinas station yards house the Welsh Highland Railway offices, carriage sheds and locomotive depot as well as extensive civil engineering works and sidings.

Preceding station Heritage Railways  Heritage railways Following station
Bontnewydd   Welsh Highland Railway
Porthmadog - Caernarfon 		  Tryfan Junction
  Historical railways  
Terminus   Welsh Highland Railway   Tryfan Junction
Carnarvon (Pant)
Line partly open as narrow gauge;
Station closed 		  Carnarvonshire Railway
1867-71 		  Llanwnda
Line and station closed
Caernarvon
Line partly open as narrow gauge;
Station closed 		  Carnarvonshire Railway
1871 onwards 		  Llanwnda
Line and Station closed
  1. ^ Johnson 1995, p. 72.
  2. ^ Rear 2012, pp. 56–59.
  3. ^ Turner 2003, p. 7.
  4. ^ Mitchell & Smith 2010, Photos 31-36 & Map XI.
  5. ^ Quick 2009, p. 149.
  6. ^ a b Shannon & Hillmer 1999, p. 19.
  7. ^ Butt 1995, p. 79.
  8. ^ Dunn 1958, p. 593.