Pontypool and New Inn railway station

Pontypool and New Inn
Welsh: Pont-y-pŵl
Location
Place	Pontypool
Local authority	Torfaen
Operations
Station code	PPL
Managed by	Arriva Trains Wales
Number of platforms	2
Live arrivals/departures and station information from National Rail Enquiries
Annual rail passenger usage
2004/05 *	39,876
2005/06 *	36,922
2006/07 *	33,410
2007/08 *	35,176
2008/09 *	35,594
2009/10 *	39,252
History
Opened 1852 (1852)
National Rail - UK railway stations
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
* Annual estimated passenger usage based on sales of tickets in stated financial year(s) which end or originate at Pontypool and New Inn from Office of Rail Regulation statistics. Please note: methodology may vary year on year.

Coleford, Monmouth, Usk & Pontypool Railway

Legend Ross and Monmouth Railway Wye Valley Railway and Coleford Railway 0m 46ch River Wye 0m 0ch Monmouth Troy Monmouth Troy tunnel River Trothy 3m 32ch Dingestow 5m 56ch Elms Bridge Halt 6m 34ch Raglan 6m 43ch Raglan Footpath 7m 59ch Raglan Road Crossing Halt 8m 52ch Llandenny 9m 66ch Cefntilla Halt Usk Tunnel 12m 4ch Usk River Usk 14m 28ch ROF Glascoed 14m 48ch Glascoed Halt Welsh Marches Line 16m 12ch Little Mill Junction Pontypool Road

Pontypool and New Inn railway station (Welsh: Pont-y-pŵl a New Inn) is situated to the south east of Pontypool town centre between the town and the suburb of New Inn.

It is part of the British railway system owned by Network Rail and is operated by Arriva Trains Wales. It lies on the Welsh Marches Line line from Newport to Crewe.

History

The station was originally established by the Newport, Abergavenny and Hereford Railway and named Pontypool Road; the addition of "Road" within the station name is common in railway parlance when the station is situated away from the centre of the town served.

GWR

Subsequently, it became part of the Great Western Railway.

Pontypool had more centrally-located stations on branch lines, including Pontypool Blaendare Road, Pontypool Clarence Street and Pontypool Crane Street, but Pontypool Road was by far the biggest. Indeed, at its peak it was one of the busiest junctions in the country with a large engine shed and many sidings, but as the railways went into decline in the 1950s the area was particularly badly hit by closures. The passenger service to Usk and Monmouth was withdrawn in 1955 and the local branch line from Newport - Blaenavon was closed in April 1962. The Beeching axe put paid to the service to Neath in June 1964 leaving Pontypool Road, as a main-line station, the only one remaining in the area. By the late 1970s the station was down to just 14 passenger trains a day on weekdays. Over the years the situation improved and by 2010 the station saw almost twice that number, but more than half of the passenger trains on the line go through without stopping.

In 1972 it was renamed to simply Pontypool. The station underwent significant refurbishment in 1994. This involved the demolition of the last surviving major building (that housed the ticket office, offices for railway maintenance personnel and space for a local scout group). The station name was once again changed to the current geographically descriptive name at this time.

The village of Griffithstown, now a substantial part of Pontypool, was named after Henry Griffiths, the first stationmaster at Pontypool Road Station.

ROF Glascoed munitions and armaments factory was once served by the Coleford, Monmouth, Usk and Pontypool Railway which branched from the mainline at Little Mill.

Facilities

The station has limited facilities due to its small size today and lack of great commuter use. There is a shelter that serves both platforms and a help point / telephone.

Service

Mondays to Saturdays

A two hourly service between Holyhead and Cardiff, with an hourly peak time service in both directions.

Sundays

An irregular service operates.

• 

  GW 0-6-2T in sidings in 1965 at Pontypool Road

• 

  Pontypool Road Locomotive Depot in 1951

External links

• Monmouthshire Railway Society
• A Short History of Pontypool Road Station
• Train times and station information for Pontypool and New Inn railway station from National Rail

Preceding station	National Rail			Following station
Cwmbran		Arriva Trains Wales Welsh Marches Line		Abergavenny