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Sugar Loaf railway station

Coordinates: 52°04′55″N 3°41′13″W / 52.082°N 3.687°W / 52.082; -3.687
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Sugar Loaf
General information
Other namesTemplate:Lang-cy
LocationPowys
Coordinates52°04′55″N 3°41′13″W / 52.082°N 3.687°W / 52.082; -3.687
Managed byArriva Trains Wales
Platforms1
Other information
Station codeSUG

Sugar Loaf railway station is a railway station in Powys, Wales, and is the most remote station on the Heart of Wales Line. It is located one mile to the north-east of a small but prominent knoll known as Sugar Loaf, around which the A483 road loops.[1] The line through here was opened by the Central Wales Extension Railway in 1868; the station was closed to passengers in 1965 but subsequently reopened to traffic in 1984.[2]

This station is a request stop used mainly by trekkers and cyclists, since it is the nearest stop to the Sugar Loaf vantage point,[3][4] although it was originally built to serve a number of cottages occupied by railway workers (such as signalmen and track gangers).[5] The children of the workers travelled by train to school in Llanwrtyd Wells.[4] South of the station the line reaches the summit at 820 feet (250 m) above sea level and then passes beneath the hills via the 1,001-yard (915 m) Sugar Loaf tunnel, which is approached by gradients as steep as 1 in 60. It then descends steadily for the next 8+1⁄2 miles (13.7 km) down to Llandovery. The climb up to the summit here was a challenging one for train crews in steam days (especially northbound) and the use of banking locomotives was commonplace.

The station sees very few passengers - in 2010/2011 an estimated 84 passengers used the station and in 2014 it was reported that the station was averaging five passengers per month.[2]

Facilities

The station has basic amenities only - a waiting shelter and timetable poster boards, though it has had a digital CIS display fitted despite its remote location. There is no step-free access available, due to the station entrance being some distance from the nearest road (the A483) along a narrow path and in a cutting.[6]

Services

All trains serving the station are operated by Arriva Trains Wales. There are four trains a day in each direction (towards Swansea and Shrewsbury) from Monday to Saturday, and two services on Sundays. Being a request stop, passengers have to give a hand signal to the approaching train driver to board or notify the guard when they board that they wish to alight from the train there.

References

  1. ^ Sugar Loaf (Map). 1:25,000. OS Explorer. Cartography by Ordnance Survey. Streetmap.co.uk. Retrieved September 19, 2012.
  2. ^ a b "Britain's forgotten railway stations". Telegraph.co.uk. 25 March 2014. Retrieved 21 December 2015.
  3. ^ "Sugar Loaf". Heart of Wales Line. Retrieved September 19, 2012.
  4. ^ a b "Sugar Loaf Halt is Wales' quietest station, Arriva says". BBC. 3 July 2017. Retrieved 3 July 2017.
  5. ^ Heart of Wales Travel Guide Doughty, Audrey, Llandeilo Past & Present; Retrieved 6 July 2016
  6. ^ Sugar Loaf station facilitiesNational Rail Enquiries; Retrieved 28 January 2017

Further reading

Preceding station National Rail National Rail Following station
Cynghordy   Arriva Trains Wales
Heart of Wales Line 		  Llanwrtyd
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