Tondu railway station

Tondu Add→{{rail-interchange}}
General information
Location	Bridgend
Managed by	Arriva Trains Wales
Platforms	1
Other information
Station code	TDU
History
Original company	Llynvi Valley Railway
Pre-grouping	Great Western Railway
Post-grouping	Great Western Railway
Key dates
25 February 1864	Opened
22 June 1970	Closed
28 September 1992	Reopened

Tondu railway station is a railway station serving the town of Tondu, Bridgend county borough, South Wales. It located on the Maesteg Line from Cardiff via Bridgend.

Passenger services are operated by Arriva Trains Wales as part of the Valley Lines network for local services.

History

The station was opened by the Llynvi Valley Railway on 25 February 1864. Originally developed as part of the Duffryn Llynvi and Porthcawl Railway, it was a junction of six railway lines:

• The Duffryn Llynvi and Porthcawl Railway from Porthcawl to Maesteg
• The Maesteg Line to Bridgend, connecting to the South Wales Main Line
• The Ogmore Valley Railway to Brynmenyn
• The Port Talbot Railway and Docks Company to Port Talbot docks and Pontyrhyl
• The Garw Valley Railway to Brynmenyn and onwards to the Blaengarw and International collieries

Coal train from the Ogmore Valleys passing Tondu in 1962

It hence had an extensive set of railway workshops, and was also the junction access point for the Tondu Ironworks.

The ironworks shut form 1895 onwards, but the previous developments meant that it remained an important junction with the instalation of a wagon works for the collieries in the area. After the Beeching Axe in the 1960s, and the closure of the Balengarw and International collieries in the late 1980s, the station and lines were greatly rationalised. Tondu station was closed on 22 June 1970, and was reopened on 28 September 1992. British Rail and Mid Glamorgan County Council reopened the line.

The current passing loop is still controlled by the former Tondu junction signal box, which manually controls the line using semaphore signals. As well as the former Maesteg Line, the former Port Talbot Railway and Docks Company line exists as a freight-only by-pass line to Margam.

Preceding station	National Rail			Following station
Sarn		Arriva Trains Wales Maesteg Line		Garth
	Disused railways
Sarn		Great Western Railway Maesteg Line		Llangynwyd Line open, station closed.

Arriva Trains Wales 150252 passes the Tondu Junction signal box with a service to Cheltenham Spa.

External links

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

Llynvi and Ogmore Railway
originally Duffryn, Llynvi and Porthcawl Railway
to Glyncorrwg South Wales Mineral Railway to Tonmawr Cymmer Viaduct Rhondda and Swansea Bay Railway to Port Talbot │ to Treherbert West Junction Cymmer Afan Abergwynfi Abergwynfi Colliery Cymmer Tunnel 1591 yd 1455 m Caerau Colliery Caerau Nantyffyllon Port Talbot Railway and Docks Company to Pontyrhyl Maesteg (Neath Road) PTR&DCo to Port Talbot Maesteg Castle Street Maesteg Maesteg (Ewenny Road) Garth Troedyrhiew Garth Llangynwyd Ogmore Valley Railway to Brynmenyn Tondu South Wales Main Line to Bridgend Cefn Junction PTR&DCo Kenfig Hill South Wales Main Line to Bridgend Pyle Junction Pyle South Wales Main Line to Swansea Cornelly Quarry Nottage Halt Nottage Tunnel 63 yd 58 m Porthcawl