Talyllyn Railway

Talyllyn Railway
Rheilffordd Talyllyn
Talyllyn Railway - geograph.org.uk - 866546
Talyllyn Railway - geograph.org.uk - 866546
Locomotive No. 1 Talyllyn arrives at Nant Gwernol terminus.
LocaleWales
TerminusTywyn Wharf
Coordinates52°35′01″N 4°05′19″W / 52.5837°N 4.0887°W / 52.5837; -4.0887
The Talyllyn Railway starts from Tywyn, on the coast of Cardigan Bay which forms a large part of the western coast of Wales. The nearest large towns are Barmouth/Abermaw to the north and Aberystwyth to the south. The railway runs inland in an approximately north-easterly direction.
Map showing location of Talyllyn Railway
Commercial operations
NameTalyllyn Railway
Original gauge2 ft 3 in (686 mm)
Preserved operations
Operated byTalyllyn Railway Company, supported by Talyllyn Railway Preservation Society
Stations7 and 5 halts
Length7.25 miles (11.67 km)
Preserved gauge2 ft 3 in (686 mm)
1865Royal Assent achieved
1866Opened for passenger services
1911Sold to Henry Haydn Jones
1946Quarry closed
Preservation history
1951Taken over by the Preservation Society
1976Opening of extension to Nant Gwernol
2005New station building and museum opened at Tywyn
2021Railway celebrated 70 years of preservation
2021Railway designated part of a World Heritage Site

The Talyllyn Railway (Welsh: Rheilffordd Talyllyn) is a narrow-gauge railway in Wales running for 7+1⁄4 miles (12 km)[1] from Tywyn[a] on the Mid-Wales coast to Nant Gwernol near the village of Abergynolwyn. The line was opened in 1865[3] to carry slate from the quarries at Bryn Eglwys to Tywyn, and was the first narrow gauge railway in Britain authorised by Act of Parliament to carry passengers using steam haulage.[4][5] Despite severe underinvestment,[6] the line remained open, and in 1951 it became the first railway in the world to be preserved as a heritage railway by volunteers.[7][8]

Since preservation, the railway has operated as a tourist attraction, expanding its rolling stock through acquisition and an engineering programme to build new locomotives and carriages. In 1976, an extension was opened along the former mineral line from Abergynolwyn to the new station at Nant Gwernol. In 2005 a major rebuilding and extension of Tywyn Wharf station took place, including a much-expanded facility for the Narrow Gauge Railway Museum, and in 2021 the railway was designated a World Heritage Site as part of the slate landscape of north-west Wales.

The fictional Skarloey Railway, which formed part of The Railway Series of children's books by the Rev. Wilbert Awdry, was based on the Talyllyn Railway. The preservation of the line inspired the Ealing Comedy film The Titfield Thunderbolt.

  1. ^ Boyd 1965, page 85
  2. ^ Bate 2001, page 186
  3. ^ Drummond 2015, page 17
  4. ^ Mitchell and Eyres, 2005 page 7
  5. ^ Boyd 1988, page 44
  6. ^ Rolt 1965, page 50
  7. ^ Thomas 2002, page 32
  8. ^ Ransom 1996, page 139


Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).