Barmouth Bridge
Encyclopedia
River Mawddach
The River Mawddach is a river in North Wales which has its source in a wide area north of Dduallt in Snowdonia. The river is much branched and many of the significant tributaries are of a similar size to the main river...
river on the coast of Cardigan Bay
Cardigan Bay
Cardigan Bay is a large inlet of the Irish Sea, indenting the west coast of Wales between Bardsey Island, Gwynedd in the north, and Strumble Head, Pembrokeshire at its southern end. It is the largest bay in Wales....
between Morfa Mawddach
Morfa Mawddach railway station
Morfa Mawddach railway station, formerly Barmouth Junction, is in Gwynedd, Wales, on the Cambrian Coast Railway between and at its junction with the Dolgelley branch of the Aberystwyth and Welsh Coast Railway part of the Ruabon to Barmouth Line which closed in 1965.- Background :North of Morfa...
and Barmouth
Barmouth
Barmouth ; Y Bermo ) is a town in the county of Gwynedd, north-western Wales, lying on the estuary of the River Mawddach and Cardigan Bay.The town is served by Barmouth railway station.- History :...
in Gwynedd
Gwynedd
Gwynedd is a county in north-west Wales, named after the old Kingdom of Gwynedd. Although the second biggest in terms of geographical area, it is also one of the most sparsely populated...
, Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
. A footbridge is incorporated on the landward side and pedestrians can walk by the side of the track across the river on payment of a toll of 70 pence (cycles 30 pence extra). The toll is the same for a single or same day return crossing. The distance is about 900 yards (823 m). The viaduct carries the Cambrian Line
Cambrian Line
The Cambrian Line is a railway from Shrewsbury to Welshpool, Aberystwyth and Pwllheli. The railway runs first through the central part of Wales and then along the coast of Cardigan Bay....
, the main line of the former Cambrian Railways
Cambrian Railways
Cambrian Railways owned of track over a large area of mid-Wales. The system was an amalgamation of a number of railways that were incorporated in 1864, 1865 and 1904...
, which runs from Shrewsbury
Shrewsbury
Shrewsbury is the county town of Shropshire, in the West Midlands region of England. Lying on the River Severn, it is a civil parish home to some 70,000 inhabitants, and is the primary settlement and headquarters of Shropshire Council...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
to Pwllheli
Pwllheli
Pwllheli is a community and the main market town of the Llŷn Peninsula in Gwynedd, north-western Wales. It has a population of 3,861, of which a large proportion, 81 per cent, are Welsh speaking. Pwllheli is the place where Plaid Cymru was founded. It is the birthplace of Albert Evans-Jones -...
, and carries passenger trains operated by Arriva Trains Wales.
The bridge was built by the Aberystwyth and Welsh Coast Railway
Aberystwyth and Welsh Coast Railway
The Aberystwith and Welsh Coast Railway was a standard gauge railway built in 1863 connecting major towns on the Welsh coast.- History :...
and opened in 1867. As built, it included a lifting drawbridge
Drawbridge
A drawbridge is a type of movable bridge typically associated with the entrance of a castle surrounded by a moat. The term is often used to describe all different types of movable bridges, like bascule bridges and lift bridges.-Castle drawbridges:...
section to permit the passage of tall ships, was constructed entirely of wood. The drawbridge section, at the northern end of the bridge, was rebuilt in 1901 as a swing bridge
Swing bridge
A swing bridge is a movable bridge that has as its primary structural support a vertical locating pin and support ring, usually at or near to its centre of gravity, about which the turning span can then pivot horizontally as shown in the animated illustration to the right...
with two steel spans.
Passenger train services over the bridge declined significantly during the 1960s, when the Ruabon to Barmouth
Ruabon Barmouth Line
The Ruabon to Barmouth Line was a standard gauge branch line of the Great Western Railway across the north of Wales which connected Ruabon, in the east, with Barmouth on the west coast.-Connections:...
line via Llangollen
Llangollen
Llangollen is a small town and community in Denbighshire, north-east Wales, situated on the River Dee and on the edge of the Berwyn mountains. It has a population of 3,412.-History:...
and Dolgellau
Dolgellau
Dolgellau is a market town in Gwynedd, north-west Wales, lying on the River Wnion, a tributary of the River Mawddach. It was the county town of the former county of Merionethshire .-History and economy:...
was closed causing all traffic to take the longer and slower route from Shrewsbury via Machynlleth
Machynlleth
Machynlleth is a market town in Powys, Wales. It is in the Dyfi Valley at the intersection of the A487 and the A489 roads.Machynlleth was the seat of Owain Glyndŵr's Welsh Parliament in 1404, and as such claims to be the "ancient capital of Wales". However, it has never held any official...
and Dovey Junction
Dovey Junction railway station
Dovey Junction railway station is a railway station on the Cambrian Line in Wales. It is the junction where the line splits into the line to Aberystwyth and the Cambrian Coast Line to Pwllheli...
. The old trackbed from Morfa Mawddach railway station to Dolgellau now forms the Mawddach Trail, a walk and cycle trail.
Serious doubts in 1980 concerning the safety of the ageing wooden structure (thanks to an attack by the toredo marine worm
Shipworm
Shipworms are not worms at all, but rather a group of unusual saltwater clams with very small shells, notorious for boring into wooden structures that are immersed in sea water, such as piers, docks and wooden ships...
) under the weight of modern locomotives led to a ban on locomotive-hauled trains. The ban brought the immediate cessation of the diminishing freight traffic north of Tywyn
Tywyn railway station
Tywyn railway station serves the town of Tywyn in Gwynedd, Wales. The station is on the Cambrian Coast Railway with passenger services to Barmouth, Harlech, Porthmadog, Pwllheli, Aberdovey, Machynlleth and Shrewsbury. The line was built by the Aberystwyth and Welsh Coast Railway in 1863 and became...
, including explosives traffic to and from the factory at Penrhyndeudraeth
Penrhyndeudraeth
Penrhyndeudraeth is a village and community in the Welsh county of Gwynedd. It is located between Traeth Mawr , the now largely reclaimed estuary of the Afon Glaslyn, and Traeth Bach , the estuary of the Afon Dwyryd. The village is close to the mouth of the Afon Dwyryd on the A487 from...
. That traffic was re-routed via Maentwrog Road railway station
Maentwrog Road railway station
Maentwrog Road railway station was a railway station on the Great Western Railway's Bala Ffestiniog Line in Wales. It closed to passenger services on 2 January 1960 and freight services on 27 January 1961....
and the Conwy Valley Line
Conwy Valley Line
The Conwy Valley Line is a railway line in north Wales. It runs from Llandudno via Llandudno Junction to Blaenau Ffestiniog, and was originally part of the London and North Western Railway, being opened in stages to 1879...
.
On 13 April 1986 British Rail
British Rail
British Railways , which from 1965 traded as British Rail, was the operator of most of the rail transport in Great Britain between 1948 and 1997. It was formed from the nationalisation of the "Big Four" British railway companies and lasted until the gradual privatisation of British Rail, in stages...
Class 37
Class 37
Class 37 may refer to:*British Rail Class 37, a British diesel locomotive* DRG Class 37, a class of German steam locomotives with 2-6-0 wheel arrangements operated by the Deutsche Reichsbahn:** Class 37.0-1: Prussian P 6** Class 37.1-2: PKP Class Oi1...
37427 was named "Bont Y Bermo" to celebrate the (short-lived) re-introduction of locomotive-hauled trains following repairs in 1985-1986. Following major repairs the weight restriction was relaxed in 2005, and locomotive-hauled trains have again been allowed to cross.
The first road crossing of the Afon Mawddach is a toll bridge at Penmaenpool
Penmaenpool
Penmaenpool is a village on the south side of River Mawddach in Wales, near Dolgellau.- Points of interest :*Penmaenpool toll bridge - wooden tollbridge built in 1879, Cadw registered building...
about 5 miles (8 km) further upstream and suitable only for motor cars and light vans. Heavier road vehicles must use the first public road bridge, which is at Dolgellau
Dolgellau
Dolgellau is a market town in Gwynedd, north-west Wales, lying on the River Wnion, a tributary of the River Mawddach. It was the county town of the former county of Merionethshire .-History and economy:...
about 10 miles (16 km) from Barmouth.