Portmadoc, Beddgelert and South Snowdon Railway
Encyclopedia
The Porthmadog, Beddgelert and South Snowdon Railway (PB&SSR) was a narrow gauge
railway intended to connect Porthmadog
with the North Wales Narrow Gauge Railways
link terminus at Rhyd Ddu
. Although some of the line was constructed between 1901 and 1906, it never opened and eventually became part of the Welsh Highland Railway
.
at about 630 volts using the system devised by Ganz
of Budapest
.
The PB&SSR would have run from the western end of Black Rock sands via Morfa Bychan, Borth y gest, Portmadoc and, using part of the Croesor Tramway
, to Beddgelert to link with the South Snowdon Quarries (hence the title) in the Gwynant Valley. There was no intention initially to connect with the North Wales Narrow Gauge system which, at that time, terminated at South Snowdon near the village of Rhyd Ddu.
Ten electric locomotives were ordered from Bruce Peebles & Co. Ltd.
of Edinburgh
who held a licence from Ganz. At least six were built, although none were delivered. All six were scrapped during the First World War. The electrification project was abandoned about 1906 and a steam locomotive "Russell" was ordered from the Hunslet Engine Company
of Leeds
.
The electricity was to be produced at a hydro electric power station further up the Gwynant Valley and surplus power was to be available for local domestic and industrial use. This part of the scheme was actually built and the power station still operates.
The North Wales Power and Traction Co Ltd, the sole PBSSR backer, overspent on the construction of the power station. It started generating electricity in September 1906, but meanwhile, completion of the railway and electrifying the NWNGR took a back seat, and in January 1906 J.C. Russell, Chairman and Managing Director of the NWNGR, insisted on terms for a two year delay which included expenditure on "restoring the NWNGR for present steam working and providing one steam locomotive for a sum not exceeding £2,500". This resulted in the arrival of Russell as NWNGR property. In the event this delay led to an abandonment.
The PB&SSR and North Wales Narrow Gauge Railways
were later amalgamated and became the Welsh Highland Railway
. Some work undertaken for the PB&SSR was used for the Welsh Highland Railway. The unused bridge by the Goat Hotel at Beddgelert
and nearby bridge abutments in a field are some of the remains of the 1906 construction works.
Beddgelert extension. This resulted in a further revised scheme being approved in 1904. It appears that there were legal problems with the powers given and, in 1906, these were reapproved with amendments. Work started around this time and continued for a couple of years before being abandoned (certainly no work done after 1910). The line from Snowdon (Rhyd Ddu) was virtually complete for well over a mile and was used for a while (mainly during World War I) to extract timber from Beddgelert forest. At the Beddgelert end a roughly laid track for horse drawn wagons was also used for timber.
The original intention to run to Black Rock had been forgotten and no mention was made of the line to South Snowdon quarries. However, in 1908, they did promote a further line up the Gwynant Valley and on to Betws y coed. No work was done on this line.
It was intended to electrify all the North Wales Narrow Gauge Railways
once the two lines were connected. In 1914, local councils got together to try to get the building restarted but failed due to the start of World War I. Another attempt was made after the war which resulted in the building of the Welsh Highland Railway
following most of the same route but with changes made near Beddgelert to ease the gradients to allow the use of steam locos.
Sections of abandoned cuttings and embankments of the original route still survive in the Beddgelert area. These include an abandoned embankment and completed bridge over the A498 at the southern end of Beddgelert village near the Royal Goat Hotel.
Narrow gauge
A narrow gauge railway is a railway that has a track gauge narrower than the of standard gauge railways. Most existing narrow gauge railways have gauges of between and .- Overview :...
railway intended to connect Porthmadog
Porthmadog
Porthmadog , known locally as "Port", and historically rendered into English as Portmadoc, is a small coastal town and community in the Eifionydd area of Gwynedd, in Wales. Prior to the Local Government Act 1972 it was in the administrative county of Caernarfonshire. The town lies east of...
with the North Wales Narrow Gauge Railways
North Wales Narrow Gauge Railways
The North Wales Narrow Gauge Railways was a gauge railway running from Dinas to Bryngwyn, Wales, which was authorised by Act of Parliament 1872. The same act authorised a branch from Tryfan Junction to South Snowdon...
link terminus at Rhyd Ddu
Rhyd Ddu
Rhyd Ddu is small village in Snowdonia, North Wales.Rhyd Ddu is well known as a popular starting point for walks up Snowdon , Moel Hebog, Yr Aran and the Nantlle Ridge....
. Although some of the line was constructed between 1901 and 1906, it never opened and eventually became part of the Welsh Highland Railway
Welsh Highland Railway
The Welsh Highland Railway is a long restored narrow gauge heritage railway in North Wales, operating from Caernarfon to Porthmadog, and passing through a number of popular tourist destinations including Beddgelert and the Aberglaslyn Pass. At Porthmadog it connects with the Ffestiniog Railway...
.
History
There were several attempts by the North Wales Power and Traction Co Ltd to promote lines between Portmadoc and Beddgelert with extensions at either end. These culminated in a proposal in 1901, for a gauge electric railway to use three phase alternating currentAlternating current
In alternating current the movement of electric charge periodically reverses direction. In direct current , the flow of electric charge is only in one direction....
at about 630 volts using the system devised by Ganz
Ganz
The Ganz electric works in Budapest is probably best known for the manufacture of tramcars, but was also a pioneer in the application of three-phase alternating current to electric railways. Ganz also made / makes: ships , bridge steel structures , high voltage equipment...
of Budapest
Budapest
Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
.
The PB&SSR would have run from the western end of Black Rock sands via Morfa Bychan, Borth y gest, Portmadoc and, using part of the Croesor Tramway
Croesor Tramway
The Croesor Tramway was a Welsh narrow gauge railway line built to carry slate from the Croesor slate mines to Porthmadog. It was built in 1864 without an Act of Parliament and was operated using horse power....
, to Beddgelert to link with the South Snowdon Quarries (hence the title) in the Gwynant Valley. There was no intention initially to connect with the North Wales Narrow Gauge system which, at that time, terminated at South Snowdon near the village of Rhyd Ddu.
Ten electric locomotives were ordered from Bruce Peebles & Co. Ltd.
Bruce Peebles & Co. Ltd.
Bruce Peebles & Co. Ltd. was an Edinburgh industrial electrical engineering company founded as D. Bruce Peebles & Co. by Scottish engineer David Bruce Peebles in Edinburgh in 1866...
of Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
who held a licence from Ganz. At least six were built, although none were delivered. All six were scrapped during the First World War. The electrification project was abandoned about 1906 and a steam locomotive "Russell" was ordered from the Hunslet Engine Company
Hunslet Engine Company
The Hunslet Engine Company is a British locomotive-building company founded in 1864 at Jack Lane, Hunslet, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England by John Towlerton Leather, a civil engineering contractor, who appointed James Campbell as his Works Manager.In 1871, James Campbell bought the company for...
of Leeds
Leeds
Leeds is a city and metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. In 2001 Leeds' main urban subdivision had a population of 443,247, while the entire city has a population of 798,800 , making it the 30th-most populous city in the European Union.Leeds is the cultural, financial and commercial...
.
The electricity was to be produced at a hydro electric power station further up the Gwynant Valley and surplus power was to be available for local domestic and industrial use. This part of the scheme was actually built and the power station still operates.
The North Wales Power and Traction Co Ltd, the sole PBSSR backer, overspent on the construction of the power station. It started generating electricity in September 1906, but meanwhile, completion of the railway and electrifying the NWNGR took a back seat, and in January 1906 J.C. Russell, Chairman and Managing Director of the NWNGR, insisted on terms for a two year delay which included expenditure on "restoring the NWNGR for present steam working and providing one steam locomotive for a sum not exceeding £2,500". This resulted in the arrival of Russell as NWNGR property. In the event this delay led to an abandonment.
The PB&SSR and North Wales Narrow Gauge Railways
North Wales Narrow Gauge Railways
The North Wales Narrow Gauge Railways was a gauge railway running from Dinas to Bryngwyn, Wales, which was authorised by Act of Parliament 1872. The same act authorised a branch from Tryfan Junction to South Snowdon...
were later amalgamated and became the Welsh Highland Railway
Welsh Highland Railway
The Welsh Highland Railway is a long restored narrow gauge heritage railway in North Wales, operating from Caernarfon to Porthmadog, and passing through a number of popular tourist destinations including Beddgelert and the Aberglaslyn Pass. At Porthmadog it connects with the Ffestiniog Railway...
. Some work undertaken for the PB&SSR was used for the Welsh Highland Railway. The unused bridge by the Goat Hotel at Beddgelert
Beddgelert
Beddgelert, or in older English spelling often Bedgellert, is a village and community in the Snowdonia area of Gwynedd, Wales. It is reputed to be named after the legendary hound Gelert. Population 617.- History:...
and nearby bridge abutments in a field are some of the remains of the 1906 construction works.
Additional information
No railway construction was started but, by 1903, a revised scheme was being put forward to link up with the North Wales Narrow Gauge RailwaysNorth Wales Narrow Gauge Railways
The North Wales Narrow Gauge Railways was a gauge railway running from Dinas to Bryngwyn, Wales, which was authorised by Act of Parliament 1872. The same act authorised a branch from Tryfan Junction to South Snowdon...
Beddgelert extension. This resulted in a further revised scheme being approved in 1904. It appears that there were legal problems with the powers given and, in 1906, these were reapproved with amendments. Work started around this time and continued for a couple of years before being abandoned (certainly no work done after 1910). The line from Snowdon (Rhyd Ddu) was virtually complete for well over a mile and was used for a while (mainly during World War I) to extract timber from Beddgelert forest. At the Beddgelert end a roughly laid track for horse drawn wagons was also used for timber.
The original intention to run to Black Rock had been forgotten and no mention was made of the line to South Snowdon quarries. However, in 1908, they did promote a further line up the Gwynant Valley and on to Betws y coed. No work was done on this line.
It was intended to electrify all the North Wales Narrow Gauge Railways
North Wales Narrow Gauge Railways
The North Wales Narrow Gauge Railways was a gauge railway running from Dinas to Bryngwyn, Wales, which was authorised by Act of Parliament 1872. The same act authorised a branch from Tryfan Junction to South Snowdon...
once the two lines were connected. In 1914, local councils got together to try to get the building restarted but failed due to the start of World War I. Another attempt was made after the war which resulted in the building of the Welsh Highland Railway
Welsh Highland Railway
The Welsh Highland Railway is a long restored narrow gauge heritage railway in North Wales, operating from Caernarfon to Porthmadog, and passing through a number of popular tourist destinations including Beddgelert and the Aberglaslyn Pass. At Porthmadog it connects with the Ffestiniog Railway...
following most of the same route but with changes made near Beddgelert to ease the gradients to allow the use of steam locos.
Sections of abandoned cuttings and embankments of the original route still survive in the Beddgelert area. These include an abandoned embankment and completed bridge over the A498 at the southern end of Beddgelert village near the Royal Goat Hotel.