Passenger demand pushes increase in summer timetable options
Due to the popularity of services covering the new section of the Welsh Highland Railway (WHR) opened in April, the Ffestiniog and Welsh Highland Railway has evaluated options for enhancing the summer timetable to offer more opportunities for return journeys over the whole line from both Caernarfon and Porthmadog.
The WHR is North Wales’ newest – and, at 25 miles, the UK’s longest – heritage railway. Now open from beneath the castle walls in Caernarfon to the Ffestiniog Railway’s Harbour Station in Porthmadog, it offers visitors a journey across Snowdonia more than 40 miles in length.
“It is highly unusual to contemplate significant changes to the timetable once the season is underway,” said general manager Paul Lewin. “But traffic figures show a clear preference for the services which cover the whole railway rather than those terminating at Pont Croesor.
“We are continually working to improve the experience offered to our customers and the addition of extra through services gives passengers greater choice and offers more journey opportunities.”
The most significant enhancement is an improved service on Fridays and Sundays in July and August, when two Porthmadog – Pont Croesor shuttle services will connect with Caernarfon trains, offering a choice of three full-line return trips a day from both Porthmadog and Caernarfon.
From 19 July until 8 September, an additional shuttle service will operate from Pont Croesor to Porthmadog on most weekdays, allowing passengers a choice of two return times from Caernarfon.
Welsh Highland trains cross the width of the Snowdonia National Park, past the foot of Snowdon and the beautiful village of Beddgelert, before travelling the length of the Aberglaslyn Pass – voted the most beautiful spot in the UK by members of the National Trust. In 2010, an additional three miles of track was brought into service to a new southern terminus at Pont Croesor, alongside the RSPB’s Glaslyn Osprey Centre.