The Bala Lake Railway has released new plans for their planned extension into the town of Bala. This would see both trains and cars share a bridge in a tram style crossing.
This is a similar style of crossing to the one used at the Ffestiniog & Welsh Highland Railway's where trains cross the road over Britannia Bridge.
The current line runs from Llanuwchllyn to just outside the town at Pen y Bont, first plans were released two years ago and the extension was thought to cost more than £2.5m, the new plans with the road/rail solution would see costs drop to the £2m area.
The chairman of the Bala Lake Railway Trust, Julian Birley, said “Crossing the river is the biggest hurdle we encounter in extending the railway into the town of Bala.”
“We have commissioned a highways agency to look at the possibility of doing what we want to do in the plan and this has now been done. Paid for by one of our supporters at a cost of £6,500 this report demonstrates that the proposal is viable to run the railway down the road as a tramway and with this in mind the agency are now consulting with the county's highways department.
A meeting with Natural Resources Wales is planned next week when it will be discussed how best to build the railway along the northern end of the lake.
The funds for the first piece of land has now been raised which will provide space for the new platforms. Funds are now being raised (to the amount of £85,000) which will buy the site of the new station.
The new station in the heart of the town at Bala will have a café, and a shop. It will also have sheds to provide the rolling stock with over night storage.
- Visit the Bala Lake Railway Website
For more information
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