Pant railway station

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Pant railway station

pant_station_1962This station is the southern terminus of the narrow-gauge Brecon Mountain Railway, opened in 1980. From here visitors enjoy a round trip with views over the countryside and Taf Fechan Reservoir.

For most of its length the railway follows the route of the former Brecon & Merthyr Railway, although the original Pant station was a little to the east of today’s facilities. The photo, by Peter Clark, shows a locomotive having its water tanks replenished at Pant on the last day of passenger trains over the line, in December 1962.

The imposing station building you can see at Pant was constructed in the 1980s in a style which pays homage to the Nonconformist chapels which once thrived in every town in the South Wales Valleys. Behind the frontage are the workshops where the BMR’s steam locomotives and carriages are stored, maintained and repaired.

Some 25 metres below the station car park runs the disused Morlais Tunnel. This once allowed the mighty London & North Western Railway to tap Merthyr Tydfil’s lucrative iron trade, via a route through Tredegar to Abergavenny. A ventilation shaft for the tunnel is still marked by a circular tower near the car park.

The original Pant station was the scene of a fatal accident in August 1874. The locomotive of the 4.50pm passenger train from Brecon to Newport and three of the coaches derailed on the points where a branch line to Dowlais diverged. The fireman (stoker) fell from the cab and died under the coaches. He was John Price, 26, of Dolphin Street, Newport. Passenger Elizabeth Jeffreys suffered a broken leg and was taken to the Bruce Hotel, Dowlais. Her husband was a “puddler” – a skilled ironworker – in Ebbw Vale.

West of the Brecon Mountain Railway station are the remains of the Morlais quarries, which supplied limestone to Merthyr’s ironworks.

With thanks to Peter Clark

Postcode: CF48 2UP    View Location Map

Website of Brecon Mountain Railway