Conwy Valley line

Conwy Valley line
Blaenau Ffestiniog, the interchange between Conwy Valley trains and the narrow gauge Ffestiniog Railway
Overview
Other name(s)	Conwy Valley Railway Rheilffordd Dyffryn Conwy
Native name	Llinell Dyffryn Conwy (Welsh)
Owner	Network Rail
Locale	Conwy Gwynedd
Termini	Llandudno Blaenau Ffestiniog
Stations	13
Service
Type	Heavy Rail
Operator(s)	Transport for Wales Rail
Rolling stock	'Current' British Rail Class 197 'Previous' British Rail Class 150 Sprinter British Rail Class 153 Super Sprinter
History
Opened	1879
Technical
Line length	30.8 miles (49.6 km)
Number of tracks	2 (Llandudno–Llandudno Junction) 1 (Llandudno Junction–North Llanrwst) 2 (Passing loop at North Llanrwst) 1 (North Llanrwst–Blaenau Ffestiniog)
Character	Rural
Track gauge	4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Electrification	None
Route map (Click to expand) Show map Legend Llandudno Deganwy North Wales Coast Line to Holyhead Llandudno Junction North Wales Coast Line to Crewe Glan Conwy Tal-y-Cafn Dolgarrog North Llanrwst Llanrwst Betws-y-Coed Pont-y-Pant Dolwyddelan Roman Bridge Ffestiniog Tunnel Blaenau Ffestiniog (Pantyrafon) Ffestiniog Railway to Porthmadog Harbour Blaenau Festiniog Junction Blaenau Ffestiniog North Blaenau Ffestiniog Trawsfynydd nuclear power station Bala & Festiniog Railway to Bala Junction Show route diagram

The Conwy Valley line (Welsh: Llinell Dyffryn Conwy)^[1] is a railway line in north-west Wales. It runs from Llandudno via Llandudno Junction (Welsh: Cyffordd Llandudno) to Blaenau Ffestiniog, and was originally part of the London and North Western Railway, being opened in stages to 1879. The primary purpose of the line was to carry slate from the Ffestiniog quarries to a specially built quay at Deganwy (occasionally referred to as St George's Dock) for export by sea. The line also provided goods facilities for the market town of Llanrwst, and via the extensive facilities at Betws-y-Coed on the London to Holyhead A5 turnpike road it served many isolated communities in Snowdonia and also the developing tourist industry. Although only a little over 27 miles (43 km) between Llandudno and Blaenau Ffestiniog, the journey takes over one hour, largely due to the sinuous and steeply graded nature of the route taken (particularly south of Betws-y-Coed). Most of the stations along the line are treated as request stops.