Burry Port railway station

Burry Port railway station[1] served the town of Burry Port (Welsh: Porth Tywyn). It continued to serve the inhabitants of the area near Llanelli between 1909 and 1953 and was one of several basic halts opened on the Burry Port and Gwendraeth Valley Railway in Carmarthenshire, Wales (Welsh: Cymru).

Burry Port
LocationBurry Port, Carmarthenshire
Wales
Coordinates51.6835°N 4.2500°W / 51.6835; -4.2500
Grid referenceSN445007
Platforms1
Other information
StatusDisused
History
Original companyBurry Port and Gwendraeth Valley Railway
Pre-groupingGreat Western Railway
Post-groupingGreat Western Railway
Key dates
2 August 1909 (1909-08-02)[1]Station opened
1 July 1924 (1924-07-01)[1]Renamed Pembrey
21 September 1953 (1953-09-21)[1]Station closed

History
The BP&GVR system in 1909.

The station was opened as Burry Port in 1898 but regular passenger services began on 2 August 1909 by the Burry Port and Gwendraeth Valley Railway on the Kidwelly and Burry Port section of the line and was closed by the British Transport Commission in 1953 with the last passenger train running on Saturday 19 September 1953.[1] It was on the southern section of the Burry Port and Gwendraeth Valley Railway with Pembrey to the north and Burry Port as the terminus of the passenger line.[2]

The line had been built on the course of an old canal with resulting tight curves, low bridge clearance and a tendency to flooding. The freight service continued for coal traffic on the Cwmmawr branch to Kidwelly until 1996 by which time the last of the local collieries had closed down and the washery closure followed.[3]

Pembrey amd Burry Port on the West wales line lies to the east.

Infrastructure
1954 OS map of Burry Port and Pembrey.

The station had a single short platform, a brick built toilet block and a substantial corrugated iron ticket office and waiting room with a canopy on the northern side of the single line. The station had a run round passing loop and two carriage sidings, one of which also served a goods shed. Signalling was present.[4]

The Kidwelly route was used for coal trains, resulting in the lifting of track between Trimsaran Road and Burry Port by 2005.[5]

Burry Port railway station on the West Wales line stood close to the site of the old Burry Port and Gwendraeth Valley Railway.

Services

The station was open for use by the general public by 1909.[1]

Remnants

The section of the old line between Burry Port and Craiglon Bridge Halt is now a footpath and the NCN 4 cyclepath. The station site is now part of a roundabout.

Routes
Preceding station Historical railways Following station
Pembrey
Line and station closed		   Burry Port and Gwendraeth Valley Railway
Great Western Railway		   Terminus
Line and station Closed

See also

References
  1. Butt, R.V.J. (1995). The Directory of Railway Stations. Yeovil: Patrick Stephens Ltd. p. 49. ISBN 1-85260-508-1. R508.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  2. Butt, R.V.J. (1995). The Directory of Railway Stations. Yeovil: Patrick Stephens Ltd. p. 70. ISBN 1-85260-508-1. R508.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  3. Colonel Stephens Society
  4. Carmarthenshire LVII.3, Revised: 1913, Published: 1914.
  5. Grace's Guide to British Industrial History
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