A very brief history
The geology of Wales gave the country massive deposits of coal and other minerals. The Dulais Valley north of Neath had a number of mines which, in turn, prompted the establishment of a number of iron and copper works in the area. Initially, tramroads were used to assist mineral extraction but the growth of steam power (in manufacturing, railways and steamships) increased demand for coal and this led to the building of a number of railways in Wales with virtually each valley producing its own railway. The Dulais Valley spawned the standard gauge Neath and Brecon Railway (N&B). At Neath, the railway ended in a junction with the broad gauge Vale of Neath Railway (VoN) from where a third rail was added for a short distance so that N&B trains could terminate at the VoN station initially called Neath Low Level. This station also formed an end-on connection with the broad gauge Swansea and Neath Railway which in 1863 merged with the Vale of Neath. The first ten miles of the N&B route, from Neath to Onllwyn, was a reasonable proposition because of the established mining industry. But continuing to Brecon, via an arduous route through largely barren uplands made matters problematic. The line opened in 1864 from Neath to a colliery at Onllwyn and in 1867 was extended initially to Brecon Mount Street station, then, in 1874, to an end-on connection at Free Street joint station with the Brecon and Merthyr Junction Railway which also served the Mid Wales Railway (giving connections to the Cambrian Railway) and, via the junction at Three Cocks, the Hereford, Hay and Brecon Railway. There are links to articles on these other railways in the 'Related articles on other websites' below.
The early days of the Neath and Brecon were not unusual amongst many railways of the period in being associated with various enthusiastic amateurs and dishonest men, resulting in bankruptcy narrowly averted. Improbably, an agreement with the Midland Railway was to provide a lifeline. The Midland was seeking a route from the Midlands to Swansea and this was achieved by a complex web of agreements. The Swansea Vale Railway (SVR), a standard gauge line, was seeking investment and their terminus at Swansea St. Thomas with access to the docks appealed to the Midland. The SVR line passed through Ynysgeinon and the construction of a new Neath and Brecon Junction line from here for seven miles on a rising gradient of 1 in 50 and 1 in 55 to join the N&B at Colbren Junction gave the Midland Railway a route from Swansea to Hereford and beyond. The Junction line opened in 1867 (and was finally closed to all traffic in 1967). Through traffic from the Midland Railway secured the railway's future but local passenger traffic remained poor. The demand for coal and anthracite allowed the Neath and Brecon to continue as an independent company until absorbed into the GWR in 1922 by the Grouping. In the 1920s Neath Low Level was first renamed Neath Bridge Street and finally, a couple of years later, Neath Riverside.
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Neath and Brecon Railway Map in 1871. The N&B Junction line is shown dotted (National Archives)
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Neath and Brecon Railway Gradient Diagram (Tudor Watkins Collection)
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Map of Swansea Vale Railway, 1875, showing how the Swansea Vale Railway (in red) paralleled the Neath and Brecon Railway (shown in green) and part of the N&B Junction line which joined the two routes. (By Afterbrunel - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0)
The Railway after Nationalisation
The railway was the haunt of the various classes of 'Pannier' tank. Although demand for coal remained strong, by 1954 there were only two passenger round trips daily from Neath to Brecon, worked by one locomotive based at Neath. In 1958 this had reduced to one round trip on weekdays. By 1961, passenger services beyond Colbren Junction ceased with three round trips daily between Neath and Colbren Junction. The line between Craig-y-Nos and Brecon was closed to all traffic in 1962 and the remaining passenger services were withdrawn in 1964. From 1970, the quarry at Craig-y-Nos started to supply limestone to Llanwern steelworks.
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A Brecon train prepares for departure from Neath Riverside on 14 July 1962, a few months before closure. The South Wales main line crosses on the overbridge in the distance (Photo: Flying Stag, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons)
Change to Opencast Mining
Over time, underground mining in the area gave way to opencast mining. Excavators first remove topsoil which is stored in soil mounds to be reused in remediation work when mining is complete. Excavators then remove the unwanted material ('overburden') to access the coal-bearing layers beneath, resulting in a large pit or void. A network of roads allows the coal extracted by excavators to be hauled away. Remediation of areas once extraction ceases can start in some areas even as opencast mining continues in others. Opencast coal is frequestly "washed" to meet the customer's requirements by removing impurities. In a typical industrial Coal Washing process, water is added so that different particles in the coal sink to various depths depending on their densities, allowing separation. The Nant Helen Opencast Mine, near Onllwyn was authorised in 1985 and Onllwyn Wahery was built to process the product which was then transported by rail. The UK commitment to 'de-carbonise' the economy meant that fossil fuel burning needs to be eliminated and friction has arisen with the mining companies. More information can be found on the Coal Action Network site and a report specific to Nant Helen is here. A similar report on the nearby East Pit is here. The refusal by the Coal Authority (a non-departmental public body sponsored by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero) to issue a license for continued extraction at Nant Helen precipitated closure of the mine and Washery and the railway was mothballed.
Recent history of the line to Onllwyn
Until 2022, coal from Nant Helen was loaded onto rail wagons at Onllwyn Washery and carried away using the former Neath and Brecon Railway via the remaining connections to the South Wales Main Line in the Neath area. In the future, it is intended that the branch to Onllwyn be used to provide a railway connection to the proposed Global Centre for Rail Excellence. Before closure at Onllwyn Washery, for a time coal was also brought from Gwaun-Cae-Gurwen (situated on the branch diverging from the Central Wales Line at Pantyfynnon which had served East Pit) to Onllwyn, as shown in the picture below.
Class 60 No. 60054 arrives at Onllwyn Washery on 26-Oct-2018 with the second train of the day of loaded coal wagons from Swansea Burrows sidings (the wagons having arrived the previous day from Gwaun-Cae-Gurwen opencast site). Once unloaded all the empty wagons will return to Swansea Burrows as one, long train (Photo: Gareth Jones)
Signalling
The Neath and Brecon was signalled following Great Western practice. All the signal boxes are abolished but the much-altered and modernised signal box at Neath Riverside was retained to control the remains of the Neath and Brecon (the 'long siding' to Onllwyn) and the remains of the Vale of Neath (the 'long siding' to Cwmgwrach). There's a very informative illustrated report by the Branch Line Society here describing their visit to Port Talbot Power Signal Box and the Neath Riverside Box.
Book references
[1] 'Track Layout Diagrams of the Great Western Railway: Section 52 Neath and Brecon 2nd edition'' by R A Cooke, published Lightmoor Press (ISBN 9781871674507).
[2] 'The Neath and Brecon Railway: A History' by Gwyn Briwnant Jones, Denis Dunstone & Tudor Watkins, published Gomer (ISBN 1-84323-452-1).
[3] ‘A Regional History of the Railways of Great Britain: Volume 12 South Wales' by D. S. M. Barrie, published by David & Charles (ISBN 0-7153-7970-4).
Related articles on other websites
Neath and Brecon Railway (Wikipedia)
Neath and Brecon Railway (and related lines) (Welsh Railways Research Circle)
Vale of Neath Railway (Wikipedia)
Swansea and Neath Railway (Railscot)
Brecon and Merthyr Tydfil Junction Railway (Wikipedia)
Mid-Wales Railway (Wikipedia)
(Wikipedia)
Hereford, Hay and Brecon Railway (Wikipedia)
Onlwyn No.1 Colliery (Railscot)
Branch Line Society Signal Box visit 12/12/2019 (Branch Line Society)
History of Onllwyn Collieries (Welsh Coal Mines)
Report on Nant Helen (Coal Action)
Report on East Pit (Coal Action)
Usual disclaimer: the above links worked when this post was published but may cease to work in the future if the site owner makes changes.
Related posts on this website
Global Centre for Rail Excellence Open Day
My pictures
GCRE: The Neath and Brecon Railway.
