Brecon Mountain Railway

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Brecon Mountain Railway
Rheilffordd Mynydd Brycheiniog
1908-built German 0-6-2WTT Graf Schwerin-Löwitz and American-style carriages.
Locale Merthyr Tydfil, Wales
Terminus Pant
Commercial operations
Name Brecon Mountain Railway
Original gauge 1 ft 11 3⁄4 in (603 mm)
Preserved operations
Owned by Brecon Mountain Railway Ltd
Operated by Brecon Mountain Railway Ltd
Stations 2
Length 1.975 miles [1]
Preserved gauge 1 ft 11 3⁄4 in (603 mm)
Commercial history
Opened 1980
Preservation history
The American feel of the line is apparent from this photo of 1930 US-built Baldwin pacific No. 2 on 11 April 2004.

The Brecon Mountain Railway (Welsh: Rheilffordd Mynydd Brycheiniog) is a narrow gauge tourist railway that runs through the Brecon Beacons along the full length of the Pontsticill Reservoir. It is located three miles north of Merthyr Tydfil.

Route of the BMR

The line runs along part of the trackbed of the northern section of the former standard gauge Brecon and Merthyr Railway from Pant to Pontsticill and also to Dolygaer. The line has been extended northward, with plans to take the trains to a new station at Torpantau, over a 5 miles (8.0 km) journey.

With this, it would take it just short of the southern entrance to the 667yd long Torpantau tunnel, the highest railway tunnel in Great Britain,[2] that carried the original line through the hills along the side of Glyn Collwn to Brecon.

One of the benefits of the line, and a condition of the planning permission, is that tourists can access and experience remote parts of the Brecon Beacons National Park without driving their cars through it.[3] Car parking for railway passengers is only available at Pant Station, outside the National Park.

The railway is a member of the Great Little Trains of Wales.

Locomotives

Full list of steam locomotives at the site:[4]

Builder Works No. Date Type Name or Number
Baldwin 15511 1897 2-6-2 26
Baldwin 61269 1930 4-6-2 2
Brecon Mountain Railway 001 1987 0-6-0DH
De Winton 1894 0-4-0VBT Pendyffryn
Henschel 29587 1957 2-8-2 146 (SAR NG15 Class)
Hunslet Engine Co. 827 1903 0-4-0ST Sybil
Jung 1261 1908 0-6-2WT+T Graf Schwerin-Löwitz 99-3553
Redstone 1905 0-4-0VBTT
Wickham 10943 1976 2w-2PMR

Operational steam locomotives

  • Baldwin pacific No. 2. Originally built for the Eastern Province Cement Company in Port Elizabeth, South Africa. Acquired by the Brecon Mountain Railway around 1990, and restored to full working order in 1997.[5]
  • Jung 0-6-2WT+T Graf Schwerin-Löwitz (until 1969 DR Class 99.335[6])

Undergoing overhaul, restoration or light work

  • Baldwin 2-6-2 No.26. Undergoing a rebuild in the railways workshops.

See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Brecon Mountain Railway.

References

  1. ↑ Jacobs (Ed.), Gerald (2005). Railway Track Diagrams Book 3: Western. Trackmaps, Bradford upon Avon. ISBN 0-9549866-1-X. 
  2. ↑ www.british-heritage-railways.co.uk Accessed 18 December 2012
  3. ↑ www.narrow-gauge-pleasure.co.uk accessed 18 December 2012.
  4. ↑ UK Locos - Preserved, Private, Hired & Industrial Locos
  5. ↑ http://www.breconmountainrailway.co.uk/locomotives.html
  6. ↑ MPSB Nr. 1 bis 7 (2. Besetzung) on German Wikipedia

External links

Railway museums and heritage railways in Wales
Narrow gauge
Standard gauge
Centres and museums
  • Heritage Railways: England
  • Scotland
  • Wales
  • Northern Ireland
  • Isle of Man
  • Channel Islands

Coordinates: 51°48′33″N 3°22′02″W / 51.8093°N 3.36731°W / 51.8093; -3.36731

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