Foryd railway station explained

Foryd
Status:Disused
Borough:Kinmel Bay, Conwy County Borough
Country:Wales
Coordinates:53.3073°N -3.5289°W
Grid Name:Grid reference
Platforms:2
Original:Vale of Clwyd Railway
Pregroup:London and North Western Railway
Postgroup:London, Midland and Scottish Railway
Years1:5 October 1858
Events1:Opened
Years2:20 April 1885
Events2:Closed
Years3:11 May 1885
Events3:New station opened
Years4:2 July 1917
Events4:Closed
Years5:1 July 1919
Events5:Reopened
Years6:5 January 1931
Events6:Closed
Years7:4 June 1938
Events7:Reopened as Kinmel Bay Halt
Years8:10 September 1938
Events8:Closed
Years9:19 June 1939
Events9:Reopened
Years10:2 September 1939
Events10:Closed[1]
Years11:9 October 1948
Events11:Officially closed

Foryd railway station (later known as Kinmel Bay Halt) was a railway station built to serve Kinmel Bay, then in Flintshire but now in Conwy County Borough, Wales.

History

The original Foryd station was opened on 5 October 1858 and was situated on the Denbigh, Ruthin and Corwen Railway,[2] incorporating a station house designed by the Denbigh firm of Lloyd Williams and Underwood.[3] The station was then moved to its second site, this time on the North Wales Coast Line, on 20 April 1885.[4] where it remained until its closure in 1948. There were four tracks running through the station, two slow and two fast, with the two platforms located adjacent to the slow tracks.

As was the case with many smaller stations of the time Foryd closed temporarily as a war economy measure between 2 July 1917 and 1 July 1919. The station continued to be used for only 12 years after this, closing again in 1931. It was then renamed to Kinmel Bay and experimentally re-opened during the summers of 1938 and 1939. Services never ran from there again and the station was permanently closed on 9 October 1948.[5] Nothing remains of either the station buildings or platforms, although the busy North Wales Coast Line still runs through the site.

In 2009 there was much speculation that a new station was to be built in the area.[5] January 2013 saw the North Wales Weekly News announce that £20 million had been earmarked for new stations in the UK and that funds would be applied for from this pot for the scheme.[6] However just a month later the Taith Joint Board, the North Wales transport consortium, pulled out of seeking funding for the project, stating that the "necessary infrastructure improvements have not been carried out".[7]

Further reading

Notes and References

  1. Butt, R.V.J., (1995) The Directory of Railway Stations, Yeovil: Patrick Stephens
  2. Web site: Foryd (Kinmel Bay Halt) . Disused Stations . Paul . Wright . Bevan . Price.
  3. Book: Lowe, Jeremy B. . [{{GBurl|IWB3HC6XRugC|page=29}} Welsh Country Workers Housing 1775-1875 ]. National Museum Wales . 1985 . 978-0-72000-298-0 . 29 .
  4. Web site: Railways . Rhyl History Club.
  5. News: Towyn on track for station resurrection after 70 years . North Wales Weekly News . 26 February 2009.
  6. News: Kinmel Bay and Towyn to get train stations . North Wales Weekly News . 31 January 2013.
  7. News: No funding application for train station in Towyn and Kinmel Bay. Rhyl Journal . 21 February 2013 .