Rail passengers face 18-mile diversion as iconic bridge closes for …

Rail passengers, cyclists and walkers face months of disruption when an iconic wooden bridge in Gwynedd ^[1] closes for the final stage of a multi-million-pound renovation. From next week Barmouth Viaduct, the largest timber bridge still in use in Britain, will be off-limits for three months

The Grade II* listed structure is nearing the end of a £30 million like-for-like restoration scheme, the biggest in its 156-year history. Phased work has been ongoing for four years ^[2] and the final phase will see the bridge’s metal sections reconstructed. Tracks on the northern edge of the viaduct, near Barmouth Toll House, are also being renewed.

For this to take place, the viaduct will be closed for 12 weeks between Saturday, September 2, and Friday, November 24. The public footpath along the viaduct will also be shut during this period.

This will be followed by another week-long closure from Saturday, November 25 to the following weekend, December 2-3, for the track renewal work. The viaduct footpath will be back open by then.

For rail passengers, bus replacement services will be provided between Pwllheli ^[3] and Machynlleth ^[4] stations, and all stations in between. For passengers wanting to continue their rail journeys either side of Barmouth ^[5] and Morfa Mawddach, the two stations linked by the bridge, it will mean a 18-mile diversion along the Mawddach estuary.

An extra bus service for local school pupils is being laid on to take them to and from school, and they will face similar disruption. Walkers and cyclists who would otherwise use the viaduct footpath, will face a 13-mile road diversion to cross the estuary.

Passengers are being advised to plan ahead and allow extra time for travelling. Network Rail ^[7], which is working with contractor Alun Griffiths on the scheme, accepts the latest closure will cause significant disruption. But it said the restoration work was split across several years and timed outside the summer tourism ^[8] season to reduce its impact on rail services and the local economy.

Nick Millington, interim route director for Network Rail Wales & Borders said: “We would like to thank the local community for their support and patience while we have and continue to safely carry out this project. We know that there is never a perfect time to close the railway, but we are happy that we have managed to do so in the least disruptive way – for the community and the tourism that means so much to Barmouth.”

Two metal bridge sections will be moved across the estuary by rail and placed on cylindrical steel caissons (Image: Dom Vacher)

The two steel sections – originally incorporated to allow ships to pass under the viaduct – are currently being prepared at a purpose-built compound near Morfa Mawddach station. Steel caissons – large cylinder supports – have been grit-blasted and painted ready to accept the two metal bridge sections.

Upgrades were needed at Barmouth bridge, the UK’s oldest timber viaduct, as it was rotting from the inside. Network Rail expects the renovations to safeguard the structure for 60 years, with at least 20 years before more major maintenance is needed.

Happy to accept the disruption so that the famous old bridge being safeguarded for the future? Let us know in the comments below.^[9]

The bridge closure follows confirmation that four-car trains have returned to the Cambrian Railway Line for the first time in six years. Passengers have long complained of being “packed in like sardines”^[10] on trains with just two carriages.

Four-car trains are operating between Machynlleth and Pwllheli ^[11] throughout the summer. However they will run only on the two busiest services each day – the 10.55am Machynlleth to Pwllheli service, and the 3.37pm return service.

Some 22 four-car-train markers have been installed along the line to inform the drivers where to stop on shorter platforms. However Network Rail said the longer train service is “dependent on sufficient trains being available across the network” so as not to compromise other services.

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References

^{^} Gwynedd (www.dailypost.co.uk)
^{^} ongoing for four years (www.dailypost.co.uk)
^{^} Pwllheli (www.dailypost.co.uk)
^{^} Machynlleth (www.dailypost.co.uk)
^{^} Barmouth (www.dailypost.co.uk)
^{^} ‘I went on one of the world’s most epic train journeys – and it changed my perception of North Wales’ (www.dailypost.co.uk)
^{^} Network Rail (www.dailypost.co.uk)
^{^} tourism (www.dailypost.co.uk)
^{^} Happy to accept the disruption so that the famous old bridge being safeguarded for the future? Let us know in the comments below. (www.dailypost.co.uk)
^{^} “packed in like sardines” (www.dailypost.co.uk)
^{^} Pwllheli (www.dailypost.co.uk)
^{^} Sign up for the North Wales Live newsletter (www.dailypost.co.uk)