Kidwelly railway station
Kidwelly railway station serves the town of Kidwelly (Welsh: Cydweli), Carmarthenshire, Wales. The station is situated on the coast just southwest of Kidwelly itself.
Kidwelly ![]() | |
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Welsh: Cydweli | |
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Location | |
Place | Kidwelly |
Local authority | Carmarthenshire |
Coordinates | 51.734°N 4.317°W |
Grid reference | SN401064 |
Operations | |
Station code | KWL |
Managed by | Transport for Wales |
Number of platforms | 2 |
DfT category | F1 |
Live arrivals/departures, station information and onward connections from National Rail Enquiries | |
Annual rail passenger usage* | |
2014/15 | ![]() |
2015/16 | ![]() |
2016/17 | ![]() |
2017/18 | ![]() |
2018/19 | ![]() |
National Rail – UK railway stations | |
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The station was opened by the South Wales Railway on 11 October 1852 and was once the junction for a branch of the Burry Port and Gwendraeth Valley Railway which ran via Ty Coch to Trimsaran Road.[1] This connection, which lay just to the east of the level crossing, was re-used between 1984 and 1996 for coal traffic to/from the washery at Coedbach following the closure of the flood-prone BP&GVR main line to Burry Port in 1983. Nothing remains today to show the industrial heritage of the railway here, as the branch has been dismantled.
History
![](../I/m/Kidwelly_or_Cydweli_railway_station%2C_South_Wales_main_line._Level_crossing.jpg)
The station was first opened as a temporary wooden platform however on 26 March 1852 Emery of Gloucester was awarded the contract and a stone-built station was constructed of a style repeated all along the line.[2] These station buildings have been demolished and replaced with basic shelters. The station is now unmanned and is a request stop.
On 20 June 1957 a Royal Air Force Hawker Hunter crashed 200 yards east of station with the death of the pilot.[3]
At the east end of the station is a signal box with an adjacent level crossing where the road from Kidwelly to the old quay crosses the railway line. The west end of the station ends with a bridge over the river. A World War II pillbox remains intact just before the bridge.
Services
There is a two-hourly service from the station for most of the day (Mon-Sat), improving to hourly during the morning and evening peak periods. Stops are provided by both the West Wales/Carmarthen to Manchester Piccadilly and Pembroke Dock to Swansea trains (peak periods and evenings only), though the daily Carmarthen to London Paddington service also calls eastbound (except Saturdays). A similar service is provided on Sundays, but starting later in the day.[4]
Preceding station | ![]() |
Following station | ||
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Pembrey & Burry Port | Transport for Wales West Wales line |
Ferryside |
References
- "Burry Port & Gwendraeth Valley Light Railway" The Colonel Stephens Society article; Retrieved 29 June 2016
- Bowen, R.E. (2001). The Burry Port & Gwendreath Valley Railway and its Antecedent Canals. Usk : The Oakwood Press. ISBN 085361685X.
- http://www.dyfedarchaeology.org.uk/projects/crashsites2012-13.pdf
- Table 128 National Rail timetable, December 2018
External links
- Train times and station information for Kidwelly railway station from National Rail