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Friday 10 Jan 2025

Conwy Valley line between Llandudno and North Llanrwst to reopen this Saturday after weather damage

Region & Route:

Wales & Western

| Wales & Western: Wales & Borders

The Conwy Valley line between Llandudno and North Llanrwst is set to reopen tomorrow morning (Saturday 11 January) following work to repair damage caused by adverse weather.

Engineers continue to work around the clock to reopen the rest of the line – from North Llanrwst to Blaenau Ffestiniog – where repairs are being carried out on a damaged bridge between Llanrwst and Betws-y-coed.

The line has been shut since New Year’s Eve, with engineers working to repair damage to the track, level crossings and bridges.

They have removed a tree and repaired four major washout sites, where the ballast (track stone) was washed away, over a 2.5-mile section of track between North Llanrwst and Tal-y-Cafn stations.

They also had to install new ballast at dozens of smaller washout sites, as well as repairing multiple level crossings and two bridges south of Llanrwst station.

Rachel Heath, Network Rail Wales & Borders operations director, said: “There is a history of weather damage on the Conwy Valley line, with the line itself being built on a floodplain and exposed to the worst of the elements.

“Network Rail has, in recent years, repaired the worst-hit areas of the line and made them resilient by installing rock armour – but resilience is not about being resistant.

“Unfortunately, there will be times where we must close the railway to carry out repairs – however, the extensive work carried out in 2019 and 2020 means the railway is now able to recover quicker than previously when suffering weather-related damage.

“We apologise for the disruption and thank customers for their patience and understanding while our teams work around the clock to get the line open again.”

With cold weather likely to continue overnight, customers are advised to check before they travel via the Transport for Wales journey planner at TfW's journey planner or National Rail Enquiries.