From the turn of the century the line served mining activity centred on several pits and collieries. The branch served several collieries between Brynmawr and Waunafon. The first of these was the Waun Nantyglo colliery, which was situated a little east of a tramway which later carried the B4248 Brynmawr to Blaenavon Road. The connection was removed by 1925. As Waunafon was approached on a facing branch to the left was built, leading to Clydach colliery, but these had gone by 1915, to be replaced by New Clydach Colliery sidings. Vestiges of these remained until 1950. Some 300m south of Waunafon station a branch, built in 1870, veered to the West to serve the Milfraen Colliery. The space between the single platform station at Waunafon and the branch was occupied by a series of loops and sidings. In 1913 a small platform, called Garn-yr-Erw halt was built just north of the Whistle Road Bridge. This halt had no timetable for passengers as it was used only by miners. [5]
By 1938 Milfraen Pit had ceased production having exhausted its own coal reserves, the branchline that served it was removed in 1937. The line was closed to passengers, not during the Beeching Cuts which befell the GWR route to Blaenavon Low Level, but in 1941 due to the exigencies of the Second World War. Blaenavon shed closed in 1942 and eventually goods also ceased in 1954. The line was retained for wagon storage until 1953, and around 1950, a temporary siding was laid in connection with opencast workings on the Blorenge, branching east roughly at the point where the Milfraen Colliery branch had previously branched west. The declining situation continued through the 50s, then Varteg Hill [6] subsequently closed in 1964 leaving Big Pit as the primary exporter of coal left. Although passenger and goods traffic had long ceased to Brynmawr the track was re-laid by the NCB to just south of Waunavon station again during the 1970s for the Black Lion Disposal Point washery.
Although the track along the whole route to Brynmawr was finally lifted in July 1961, the section from Blaenavon to Pontypool was still in use for coal trains from other local mines until Big Pit finally closed in 1980. The line from Cwmbran was dismantled right up to outside Blaenavon High Level station whilst the washery and other colliery buildings which were all but demolished during 1987. Much of the railway today has now become part of the National Cycle Network Route 46 [7].
The route was visited in
2006.
A detailed appraisal of the history of
the line, and proposals to reopen it are found here.
pdf file
 |
Nothing remains of the former route through Brynmawr, it
having been occupied by industrial estate and roads. A short
section of bank is located near the Old Blaenavon Road, to the east of
the Nobel Industrial Estate. The bridges under the B4248 and over
the Blaenavon Road have been demolished. Only one bridge remains
on this section, that over the former Nantyglo Tramway, now a public
footpath. The embankment is cut off just east of the
bridge. |
| The section between the footpath / former tramway
bridge at Brynmawr and the Gelli Cottages north of Waeneavon has ben
completely relandscaped due to opencast coal mining and reclamation of
the land. The gap is approximately 2km. No trace of the route
exists on the ground. |
|
| The trackbed to the southeast of the Gelli Cottages has been
replaced by the access track to the cottages. The access road
formerly crossed over the railway at the Racecourse Road bridge, now
partly demolished. The underpass beneath the B4248 has been
filled in. Waunavon station buidling is now a private house.
Waunavon was the highest altitude railway station on a standard guage
line, at over 1400 ft above sea level. |
|
| The trackbed south from Waunavon drops down to Blaenavon
within a cutting through Milfraen Moor. Much of this has a gravel
surface, having been last used in the 1970's during demolition of a
coal washery plant at Waunavon . The southernmost section has
been cut trough by a drainage culvert that rouns along the trackbed
towatds the Old Whistle Inn, at the northern end of the preserved
Pontypool and Blaenavon Railway. The site of the long-demolished Garn
Yr Erw miner's halt is located just north of the bridge, as are the
abandoned Pwrcas Cottages. |
|
| The Milfraen colliery branch diverges at Milfraen Junction,
just south of Waenavon Station. The branch crosses Milfraen Moor on a S
shaped embankment. Nothing remains of the former colliery site
itself. |
|
