Treherbert railway station

Treherbert
Treherbert Station in August 2017
Location	Treherbert, Rhondda Cynon Taf Wales
Coordinates	51°40′18″N 3°32′08″W / 51.6718°N 3.5356°W / 51.6718; -3.5356Coordinates: 51°40′18″N 3°32′08″W / 51.6718°N 3.5356°W / 51.6718; -3.5356
Grid reference	SS938981
Managed by	Transport for Wales
Platforms	1
Other information
Station code	TRB
Classification	DfT category F1
History
Opened	1863
Passengers
2015/16	0.510 million
2016/17	0.509 million
2017/18	0.486 million
2018/19	0.458 million
2019/20	0.396 million
Location
Wikimedia | © OpenStreetMap
Notes
Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road

Treherbert railway station is a railway station serving the village of Treherbert in Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales. It is the northern terminus of the Rhondda Line 23 miles (37 km) north west of Cardiff Central.

History[]

A station was first opened on this site by the Taff Vale Railway on 7 January 1863,^[1] and was the connecting point of the Rhondda and Swansea Bay Railway with the collieries of the Rhondda Fawr via a 1 mile 1683 yard tunnel (completed in 1890) which was one of the longest in South Wales. The TVR had opened its Rhondda Fawr branch from Dinas (north of Pontypridd) in 1856 (to serve the Marquess of Bute's newly opened colliery)^[2] and began running passenger trains to the town seven years later.

Services over the R&SB via Aberavon to Swansea ended in December 1962, but the route through the Rhondda Tunnel and on to Maesteg and Bridgend via a connection at Cymmer Afan (over the Llynvi and Ogmore Railway) remained open until 1968, when the tunnel was closed due to roof distortion caused by mining subsidence.^[3][4] A replacement bus service then operated to Cymmer until the L&O route was formally closed to passenger traffic in June 1970. The tracks northwards remained in use for mineral traffic to the collieries at Blaenrhondda until 1978, but have since been lifted.

The TVR route towards Porth was singled in stages between 1972 and 1981 (with the portion from here as far as Cwmparc signal box the first to be so treated) and today only one platform remains, though there is a run round loop still in existence north of the station (part of the old line to Cymmer Afan) and four carriage sidings for the Valley Lines DMU fleet (several of which are stabled & serviced here overnight & at weekends).

The foundation stone for the Rhondda Tunnel portal has been relocated to the station in preparation for the re-opening of the tunnel as a cycle route.^{[citation needed]}

Services[]

The basic service pattern on the route provides a departure every 30 minutes during the day Mondays to Saturdays, dropping to hourly in the evening. Trains run to (and terminate at) Cardiff Central via Porth, Radyr and Cardiff Queen Street, serving all stations except Trefforest Estate en route. One early morning service continues to Penarth. On Sundays, the frequency is two-hourly, but services run through to Barry Island.^[5] On 20 July 2018, previous franchise operator Arriva Trains Wales announced a trial period of extra Sunday services on the Rhondda Line to Cardiff and Barry Island. This was in response to a survey by Leanne Wood and the success of extra Sunday services on the Merthyr Line and the Rhymney Line.^[6] Services are operated using Class 150 Diesel Multiple Units.

Preceding station	National Rail			Following station
Ynyswen		Transport for Wales Rhondda Line		Terminus

Image gallery[]

• 

  Local train in 1946

• 

  Train arriving in the 1960s

• 

  Train from Swansea in 1962

References[]

Butt, R. V. J. (1995). The Directory of Railway Stations: details every public and private passenger station, halt, platform and stopping place, past and present (1st ed.). Sparkford: Patrick Stephens Ltd. ISBN 978-1-85260-508-7. OCLC 60251199.

External links[]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Treherbert railway station.

• Train times and station information for Treherbert railway station from National Rail