Teifi Valley Railway

Relying on old memory I think:- Apart from the remedial work on the 6 or so bridges (and one new one) to get the Gwilli up to Llampumsaint there is then the reinstatement of the 988 yard long Pencander tunnel followed by about 20 houses in Pencander village on the trackbed then reinstating areas of the trackbed being wiped out by farms and then the whole of the Llandysul station site being wiped out by the A486 Llandysul by-pass roundabout, more trackbed loss, refurbish the 167 yard Allt-y-cefn tunnel, and a couple of bridges to be repaced - before you even get to the Teifi.
Then I think there is still one or two more bridges needed to get to Newcastle Emlyn where the station site was flattened years ago and is now industrial area.
This doesn't even consider the number of unofficial 'roads' farmers have made on the trackbed or the barns or sheds they have built there.
Still shouldn't be too much of a problem should it?

 

Ah well, twas but a passing fancy!

 

Everyone has a price for which they would sell their land. It is just finding the right person with the money to make it happen. But I would think that boat has sailed and it may now be too toxic for anyone to want to help them out.

 

Whether or not anyone might wish to help out the present Teifi Valley management, how would reinstatement of more of the old line help?

 

I was suggesting that if an extension was proposed then the current membership may well think it is worth sticking around to help out, we all know of at least one project that has gone to the wall, but the harsh reality is that that others will follow.

I am sure that if the Teifi were to be closed due to a lack of tax payments I am sure that most of the stock would find another home, it would be ironic if Sgt Murphy were to somehow end up on the L&BR seeing Colin Pealling's involvement with the L&BR many years ago.

 

But the thing is: even if it were feasible to extend either railway, would it actually drive up their visitor numbers? Or would it just increase their overheads? A longer train ride isn't necessarily a more attractive proposition to non-enthusiast passengers, particularly on a line like the Teifi which (AIUI) has tended to aim mostly at the family market?

Sent from my SM-A125F using Tapatalk

 

Some historic information courtesy of the late Rowland Pittard that may be of interest.

In 1974 the Dyfed County Council finally decided not to retain the Carmarthen to Lampeter and Newcastle Emlyn branch lines. The Teifi Valley Railway Preservation Society decided to proceed with a modest two mile scheme which would be extended if successful that covered the line from Abergwili Junction to Bronwydd Arms. The operating company was known as the Gwili Railway Company Ltd.

Meanwhile the Dyfed Railway Company (no connection with the TVRPS) were hoping to buy a section of trackbed near Newcastle Emlyn on which to lay a narrow gauge (perhaps metre gauge) line.

 

extending the Gwili to Conwil would only add another 3/4 mile so keeps the operation pretty much “as is”, with similar motive power and stock. The difference between this and a further three miles to Llanpumsaint is really “tipping point” in terms of whether the extra numbers will justify the extra expenditure.

5 miles is optimum in this corner of Wales.

regards

Matt

 

Interesting discussion about extensions. Spanner in any projected works is the extent of the trackbed sold over the years. Early on the stretch from Pencader Junction to Llandysul Station was sold to a man who moved into the level crossing keepers cottage - because the area had no road access and he intended to lay a miniature railway as a supplementary tourist attraction. His wife left him and the project was abandoned. British Rail refused to give any access to the track at Llandysul from the road. The area between the platforms was sold to a local agricultural merchant who built a shed on it. The stretch from the Llandysul road bridges to the river was sold after years of encroachments by the farmer concerned. Finally the worthless and unusable short stretch with the road bridges went under the Llandysul bypass.
As those who had worked so hard to obtain the LRO retired or died off the organisation fell victim to political infighting and the importance of Company administration was forgotten.

 

Being quite remote (14 miles from Cardigan and 16 from Carmarthen) does not help. There is generally little passing trade and it's also a long way out and quite small to attract enthusiasts, most visitors are families following those What to do in... guides.

 

Back to admin failure - I asked Companies House about the possible consequences of failing to report resignation of a director and am now told that they will be writing to the TVR to ask them BUT "we cannot compel them to provide a response."
I also asked how long the objection preventing the closure of the Company will last, and they reply 17 June 2025. Then if no further objections are received the Company will be dissolved.
Hopeless.