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119-685: The Anglesey Central Railway (Welsh: Lein Amlwch , Amlwch Line ) was a 17.5-mile (28.2 km) standard-gauge railway in Anglesey , Wales, connecting the port of Amlwch and the county town of Llangefni with the North Wales Coast Line at Gaerwen . Built as an independent railway, the railway opened in portions from 1864 to 1867. Due to financial troubles the railway was sold to the London and North Western Railway in 1876, which invested significantly in

238-408: A crank on a driving axle. Steam locomotives have been phased out in most parts of the world for economical and safety reasons, although many are preserved in working order by heritage railways . Electric locomotives draw power from a stationary source via an overhead wire or third rail . Some also or instead use a battery . In locomotives that are powered by high-voltage alternating current ,

357-586: A dining car . Some lines also provide over-night services with sleeping cars . Some long-haul trains have been given a specific name . Regional trains are medium distance trains that connect cities with outlying, surrounding areas, or provide a regional service, making more stops and having lower speeds. Commuter trains serve suburbs of urban areas, providing a daily commuting service. Airport rail links provide quick access from city centres to airports . High-speed rail are special inter-city trains that operate at much higher speeds than conventional railways,

476-476: A fireman , but train passengers and crew complained at the very rough ride – rattling windows a particular complaint. As part of British Rail's Modernisation Plan , Derby Lightweight DMUs were introduced three years later. A 1956 brochure advertised day return tickets from Bangor to Amlwch for 4s.4d , or Llangefni for 11d. Steam engines continued to be used for freight trains, and for extra workings such as Saturday trains. Steam returned for all passenger trains in

595-710: A fourth rail system in 1890 on the City and South London Railway , now part of the London Underground Northern line . This was the first major railway to use electric traction . The world's first deep-level electric railway, it runs from the City of London , under the River Thames , to Stockwell in south London. The first practical AC electric locomotive was designed by Charles Brown , then working for Oerlikon , Zürich. In 1891, Brown had demonstrated long-distance power transmission, using three-phase AC , between

714-527: A funicular railway at the Hohensalzburg Fortress in Austria. The line originally used wooden rails and a hemp haulage rope and was operated by human or animal power, through a treadwheel . The line is still operational, although in updated form and is possibly the oldest operational railway. Wagonways (or tramways ) using wooden rails, hauled by horses, started appearing in the 1550s to facilitate

833-488: A hydro-electric plant at Lauffen am Neckar and Frankfurt am Main West, a distance of 280 km (170 mi). Using experience he had gained while working for Jean Heilmann on steam–electric locomotive designs, Brown observed that three-phase motors had a higher power-to-weight ratio than DC motors and, because of the absence of a commutator , were simpler to manufacture and maintain. However, they were much larger than

952-519: A light railway through the town to Amlwch station, and a marshalling yard for exchanging freight wagons. The line stopped carrying passengers on 5 December 1964, as part of the rationalisation known as the Beeching Axe . All stations were closed, and all goods yards, passing loops and sidings removed, except the marshalling yard for the Octel freight. Octel's freight traffic totaled 70,000 tons annually, and

1071-448: A passing loop suitable for passenger trains on the Amlwch line meant that trains could only operate every two hours. Coordinating this limited timetable with the main line services through Gaerwen was difficult, and passengers could face a long wait on occasions. To make the branch line workings more flexible, a passing loop was proposed for Llangwyllog in March 1914. The work was completed for

1190-431: A steam engine that provides adhesion. Coal , petroleum , or wood is burned in a firebox , boiling water in the boiler to create pressurized steam. The steam travels through the smokebox before leaving via the chimney or smoke stack. In the process, it powers a piston that transmits power directly through a connecting rod (US: main rod) and a crankpin (US: wristpin) on the driving wheel (US main driver) or to

1309-469: A transformer in the locomotive converts the high-voltage low-current power to low-voltage high current used in the traction motors that power the wheels. Modern locomotives may use three-phase AC induction motors or direct current motors. Under certain conditions, electric locomotives are the most powerful traction. They are also the cheapest to run and provide less noise and no local air pollution. However, they require high capital investments both for

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1428-502: A decade of operating as an independent company, the line was transferred to the London and North Western Railway in 1876, for £80,000. This was enacted by the ( 39 & 40 Vict. c. clxxii), and the LNWR assumed control of the line on 1 July 1876. A survey conducted by the LNWR found that the bridges and culverts were in a fair condition, but the stations were dirty. Fences were decayed, rails needed replacing, some sleepers were rotten, and

1547-544: A diesel locomotive from the company in 1909. The world's first diesel-powered locomotive was operated in the summer of 1912 on the Winterthur–Romanshorn railway in Switzerland, but was not a commercial success. The locomotive weight was 95 tonnes and the power was 883 kW with a maximum speed of 100 km/h (62 mph). Small numbers of prototype diesel locomotives were produced in a number of countries through

1666-468: A double track plateway, erroneously sometimes cited as world's first public railway, in south London. William Jessop had earlier used a form of all-iron edge rail and flanged wheels successfully for an extension to the Charnwood Forest Canal at Nanpantan , Loughborough, Leicestershire in 1789. In 1790, Jessop and his partner Outram began to manufacture edge rails. Jessop became a partner in

1785-437: A large turning radius in its design. While high-speed rail is most often designed for passenger travel, some high-speed systems also offer freight service. Since 1980, rail transport has changed dramatically, but a number of heritage railways continue to operate as part of living history to preserve and maintain old railway lines for services of tourist trains. A train is a connected series of rail vehicles that move along

1904-488: A larger locomotive named Galvani , exhibited at the Royal Scottish Society of Arts Exhibition in 1841. The seven-ton vehicle had two direct-drive reluctance motors , with fixed electromagnets acting on iron bars attached to a wooden cylinder on each axle, and simple commutators . It hauled a load of six tons at four miles per hour (6 kilometers per hour) for a distance of one and a half miles (2.4 kilometres). It

2023-423: A locomotive. This involves one or more powered vehicles being located at the front of the train, providing sufficient tractive force to haul the weight of the full train. This arrangement remains dominant for freight trains and is often used for passenger trains. A push–pull train has the end passenger car equipped with a driver's cab so that the engine driver can remotely control the locomotive. This allows one of

2142-518: A mile further on. Captain Rich, when surveying the line, noted that the curves and gradients were severe, and recommended that the line be worked at moderate speed. He also noted the lack of turntables , and the company's intention to use Fairlie engines on the line. The Anglesey Central Railway Act 1866 also gave the Anglesey Central Railway (ACR) the right to authorise Dickson to lease or work

2261-477: A number of trains per hour (tph). Passenger trains can usually be into two types of operation, intercity railway and intracity transit. Whereas intercity railway involve higher speeds, longer routes, and lower frequency (usually scheduled), intracity transit involves lower speeds, shorter routes, and higher frequency (especially during peak hours). Intercity trains are long-haul trains that operate with few stops between cities. Trains typically have amenities such as

2380-401: A passenger coach, and a guard's van , with Edward Hughes serving as the guard. The whole train went over the side of the bridge into the river. Edward Hughes dragged himself out, and was taken to the nearest farm. John Davies was scalded to death, and Taylor and Saunders were found injured, and could not be freed until mid-day. John Saunders later died from his injuries. Robert Williams, one of

2499-650: A piece of circular rail track in Bloomsbury , London, the Catch Me Who Can , but never got beyond the experimental stage with railway locomotives, not least because his engines were too heavy for the cast-iron plateway track then in use. The first commercially successful steam locomotive was Matthew Murray 's rack locomotive Salamanca built for the Middleton Railway in Leeds in 1812. This twin-cylinder locomotive

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2618-460: A pivotal role in the development and widespread adoption of the steam locomotive. His designs considerably improved on the work of the earlier pioneers. He built the locomotive Blücher , also a successful flanged -wheel adhesion locomotive. In 1825 he built the locomotive Locomotion for the Stockton and Darlington Railway in the northeast of England, which became the first public steam railway in

2737-439: A revival in recent decades due to road congestion and rising fuel prices, as well as governments investing in rail as a means of reducing CO 2 emissions . Smooth, durable road surfaces have been made for wheeled vehicles since prehistoric times. In some cases, they were narrow and in pairs to support only the wheels. That is, they were wagonways or tracks. Some had grooves or flanges or other mechanical means to keep

2856-724: A single lever to control both engine and generator in a coordinated fashion, and was the prototype for all diesel–electric locomotive control systems. In 1914, world's first functional diesel–electric railcars were produced for the Königlich-Sächsische Staatseisenbahnen ( Royal Saxon State Railways ) by Waggonfabrik Rastatt with electric equipment from Brown, Boveri & Cie and diesel engines from Swiss Sulzer AG . They were classified as DET 1 and DET 2 ( de.wiki ). The first regular used diesel–electric locomotives were switcher (shunter) locomotives . General Electric produced several small switching locomotives in

2975-407: A standard. Following SNCF's successful trials, 50 Hz, now also called industrial frequency was adopted as standard for main-lines across the world. Earliest recorded examples of an internal combustion engine for railway use included a prototype designed by William Dent Priestman . Sir William Thomson examined it in 1888 and described it as a "Priestman oil engine mounted upon a truck which

3094-620: A terminus about one-half mile (800 m) away. A funicular railway was also made at Broseley in Shropshire some time before 1604. This carried coal for James Clifford from his mines down to the River Severn to be loaded onto barges and carried to riverside towns. The Wollaton Wagonway , completed in 1604 by Huntingdon Beaumont , has sometimes erroneously been cited as the earliest British railway. It ran from Strelley to Wollaton near Nottingham . The Middleton Railway in Leeds , which

3213-412: A variety of passenger, goods and mixed trains, giving five passenger services down to Amlwch, and six up. The first train of the morning, departing Bangor at 04:20, and the 19:35 from Amlwch also carried mail to and from the island. The majority of trains still terminated at Gaerwen. As Llangefni held a livestock market on a Thursday, an extra service from Bangor to Llangefni on Thursdays was introduced by

3332-408: A wheel. This was a large stationary engine , powering cotton mills and a variety of machinery; the state of boiler technology necessitated the use of low-pressure steam acting upon a vacuum in the cylinder, which required a separate condenser and an air pump . Nevertheless, as the construction of boilers improved, Watt investigated the use of high-pressure steam acting directly upon a piston, raising

3451-465: Is capital-intensive and less flexible than road transport, it can carry heavy loads of passengers and cargo with greater energy efficiency and safety. Precursors of railways driven by human or animal power have existed since antiquity, but modern rail transport began with the invention of the steam locomotive in the United Kingdom at the beginning of the 19th century. The first passenger railway,

3570-410: Is a single, self-powered car, and may be electrically propelled or powered by a diesel engine . Multiple units have a driver's cab at each end of the unit, and were developed following the ability to build electric motors and other engines small enough to fit under the coach. There are only a few freight multiple units, most of which are high-speed post trains. Steam locomotives are locomotives with

3689-452: Is cited as "39 & 40 Geo. 3 c. 67", meaning the 67th act passed during the session that started in the 39th year of the reign of George III and which finished in the 40th year of that reign. Note that the modern convention is to use Arabic numerals in citations (thus "41 Geo. 3" rather than "41 Geo. III"). Acts of the last session of the Parliament of Great Britain and the first session of

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3808-399: Is dominant. Electro-diesel locomotives are built to run as diesel–electric on unelectrified sections and as electric locomotives on electrified sections. Alternative methods of motive power include magnetic levitation , horse-drawn, cable , gravity, pneumatics and gas turbine . A passenger train stops at stations where passengers may embark and disembark. The oversight of the train is

3927-477: Is one of the two primary means of land transport , next to road transport . It is used for about 8% of passenger and freight transport globally, thanks to its energy efficiency and potentially high speed . Rolling stock on rails generally encounters lower frictional resistance than rubber-tyred road vehicles, allowing rail cars to be coupled into longer trains . Power is usually provided by diesel or electrical locomotives . While railway transport

4046-550: Is worked on a temporary line of rails to show the adaptation of a petroleum engine for locomotive purposes." In 1894, a 20 hp (15 kW) two axle machine built by Priestman Brothers was used on the Hull Docks . In 1906, Rudolf Diesel , Adolf Klose and the steam and diesel engine manufacturer Gebrüder Sulzer founded Diesel-Sulzer-Klose GmbH to manufacture diesel-powered locomotives. Sulzer had been manufacturing diesel engines since 1898. The Prussian State Railways ordered

4165-614: The A55 just before Holland Arms station at Pentre Berw . The Red Wharf Bay branch (now removed) left the line here, as the Amlwch line continues north-west, crossing the River Cefni and approaching Llangefni . North of Llangefni, the railway follows the course of the River Cefni in The Dingle (Nant Y Pandy). Having followed the river through the narrow valley, over bridges and through cuttings,

4284-527: The Stockton and Darlington Railway , opened in 1825. The quick spread of railways throughout Europe and North America, following the 1830 opening of the first intercity connection in England, was a key component of the Industrial Revolution . The adoption of rail transport lowered shipping costs compared to water transport, leading to "national markets" in which prices varied less from city to city. In

4403-609: The United Kingdom , South Korea , Scandinavia, Belgium and the Netherlands. The construction of many of these lines has resulted in the dramatic decline of short-haul flights and automotive traffic between connected cities, such as the London–Paris–Brussels corridor, Madrid–Barcelona, Milan–Rome–Naples, as well as many other major lines. High-speed trains normally operate on standard gauge tracks of continuously welded rail on grade-separated right-of-way that incorporates

4522-523: The list of acts of the Parliament of England and the list of acts of the Parliament of Scotland . For acts passed from 1707 to 1800, see the list of acts of the Parliament of Great Britain . See also the list of acts of the Parliament of Ireland . For acts of the devolved parliaments and assemblies in the United Kingdom, see the list of acts of the Scottish Parliament , the list of acts of

4641-414: The overhead lines and the supporting infrastructure, as well as the generating station that is needed to produce electricity. Accordingly, electric traction is used on urban systems, lines with high traffic and for high-speed rail. Diesel locomotives use a diesel engine as the prime mover . The energy transmission may be either diesel–electric , diesel-mechanical or diesel–hydraulic but diesel–electric

4760-458: The puddling process in 1784. In 1783 Cort also patented the rolling process , which was 15 times faster at consolidating and shaping iron than hammering. These processes greatly lowered the cost of producing iron and rails. The next important development in iron production was hot blast developed by James Beaumont Neilson (patented 1828), which considerably reduced the amount of coke (fuel) or charcoal needed to produce pig iron. Wrought iron

4879-418: The rotary phase converter , enabling electric locomotives to use three-phase motors whilst supplied via a single overhead wire, carrying the simple industrial frequency (50 Hz) single phase AC of the high-voltage national networks. An important contribution to the wider adoption of AC traction came from SNCF of France after World War II. The company conducted trials at AC 50 Hz, and established it as

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4998-532: The 1880s, railway electrification began with tramways and rapid transit systems. Starting in the 1940s, steam locomotives were replaced by diesel locomotives . The first high-speed railway system was introduced in Japan in 1964, and high-speed rail lines now connect many cities in Europe , East Asia , and the eastern United States . Following some decline due to competition from cars and airplanes, rail transport has had

5117-521: The 1896 timetable. In the early morning of 29 November 1877, heavy rain caused the dam of the Rhodgeidio mill near Llanerchymedd to breach, and the surge of water washed away the wooden Caemawr bridge over the Afon Alaw . The first train of the day was driven by William Taylor, with fireman John Saunders and railway inspector John Davies also on the footplate . The train also included two coal trucks,

5236-510: The 1930s (the famous " 44-tonner " switcher was introduced in 1940) Westinghouse Electric and Baldwin collaborated to build switching locomotives starting in 1929. In 1929, the Canadian National Railways became the first North American railway to use diesels in mainline service with two units, 9000 and 9001, from Westinghouse. Although steam and diesel services reaching speeds up to 200 km/h (120 mph) were started before

5355-500: The 1960s in Europe, they were not very successful. The first electrified high-speed rail Tōkaidō Shinkansen was introduced in 1964 between Tokyo and Osaka in Japan. Since then high-speed rail transport, functioning at speeds up to and above 300 km/h (190 mph), has been built in Japan, Spain, France , Germany, Italy, the People's Republic of China, Taiwan (Republic of China),

5474-460: The 40 km Burgdorf–Thun line , Switzerland. Italian railways were the first in the world to introduce electric traction for the entire length of a main line rather than a short section. The 106 km Valtellina line was opened on 4 September 1902, designed by Kandó and a team from the Ganz works. The electrical system was three-phase at 3 kV 15 Hz. In 1918, Kandó invented and developed

5593-496: The Anglesey Central Railway's first drivers, noted that he had been instructed to drive the morning train, but that he slept late, and William Taylor replaced him at short notice. The bridge was later rebuilt in stone, and is known to this day as Pont Damwain (Accident Bridge). The LNWR obtained powers to build a branch from Holland Arms to Red Wharf Bay in 1899 and 1900. The line was opened to Pentraeth in 1908, and reached Red Wharf Bay in 1909. The Gaerwen-Llangefni staff section

5712-522: The Butterley Company in 1790. The first public edgeway (thus also first public railway) built was Lake Lock Rail Road in 1796. Although the primary purpose of the line was to carry coal, it also carried passengers. These two systems of constructing iron railways, the "L" plate-rail and the smooth edge-rail, continued to exist side by side until well into the early 19th century. The flanged wheel and edge-rail eventually proved its superiority and became

5831-511: The DC motors of the time and could not be mounted in underfloor bogies : they could only be carried within locomotive bodies. In 1894, Hungarian engineer Kálmán Kandó developed a new type 3-phase asynchronous electric drive motors and generators for electric locomotives. Kandó's early 1894 designs were first applied in a short three-phase AC tramway in Évian-les-Bains (France), which was constructed between 1896 and 1898. In 1896, Oerlikon installed

5950-503: The LNWR informed the ACR that they could no longer lend the engine in use, as a result of the recent court case. Three choices were suggested by the LNWR: that the line be bought outright, that a proper working arrangement be made, or that the ACR "might buy the engine and carriages now on the line". The ACR were not in a position to buy the stock, and made arrangements for the sale of the railway. After

6069-544: The LNWR). Carriage from Llangefni (then the terminus of the ACR) cost 2 shillings and sixpence more. The mines soon became uneconomic to operate and closed in 1871. Livestock, artificial fertiliser, and farm produce made up the majority of the remaining freight traffic. Dickson , who was operating all services on the railway, failed financially in September 1867. William Dew, secretary of

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6188-519: The Northern Ireland Assembly , and the list of acts and measures of Senedd Cymru ; see also the list of acts of the Parliament of Northern Ireland . The number shown after each act's title is its chapter number. Acts passed before 1963 are cited using this number, preceded by the year(s) of the reign during which the relevant parliamentary session was held; thus the Union with Ireland Act 1800

6307-530: The Red Wharf Bay railmotor operating to Llangefni three times a day. The extra Thursday service to Llangefni for the market was still included. By the summer of 1929, there were eight trains from Gaerwen to Amlwch, and seven in the other direction. One train to and from Amlwch no longer ran Thursdays, replaced with a second two return trip to Llangefni, operated by the railmotor. The loop at Llangwyllog now saw three pairs of passenger trains passing on weekdays, while

6426-444: The ballast was soft and shaley. The LNWR addressed these problems over the coming years. A short passing loop was built at Llangefni station in 1877 for engines to run round , but at only 40 yards (37 m) long it was not of much use for allowing passenger trains to pass each other. A refuge siding was built for freight trains at Llanerchymedd in 1878, along with an engine shed in Amlwch. In 1882, new station buildings replaced

6545-412: The basic wooden sheds at Holland Arms, Llangwyllog and Rhosgoch, as well as development of the junction at Gaerwen into a full double junction , and a second signal cabin built there. An extended Amlwch station received a canopy by 1884. The staff and ticket system was supplemented with block working in 1886, and was replaced with the electric staff system in 1894. The timetable for January 1883 shows

6664-612: The building of an oil tank farm in the 1970s. This was built to receive oil from tankers moored offshore in the deep waters off Amlwch, before it was pumped to the Stanlow Refinery in Cheshire . The site was decommissioned after a short life, but the short spur remains. A Class 31 locomotive, number 31296, was named 'Amlwch Freighter'/'Trên Nwyddau Amlwch' in September 1986 at the Associated Octel plant. At this point, 33 years after

6783-497: The company's ambitions: As regards the line to Port of Amlwch, nothing ought to be done till there is certainty by guarantee or otherwise of sufficient traffic to pay a proper interest on the capital to be expended in making it. On 16 December 1875, as a result of legal action by independent locomotive manufacturers, an injunction was issued restricting the LNWR "from manufacturing locomotive engines or other rolling stock for sale or hire on other than their own railway". In January 1876

6902-499: The company, writing in April of that year stated that "the affairs of the railway are in such a critical and pressing state". The ACR turned once again to the LNWR, asking them to work the line. These negotiations failed, but the LNWR did agree to lend an engine and carriages once again. T. L. Kettle suggested to the chairperson in 1870 that sale to the LNWR would be desirable, on account of the company's debts. The financial situation restricted

7021-415: The daily freight train would be shunted into sidings at Llangefni and Llanerchymedd to make way. Motor train services were back up to 24 single trips a day, including the Red Wharf Bay services. The Great Depression brought a number of cutbacks to Anglesey's railways. The withdrawal of passenger services on the Red Wharf Bay branch in September 1930 affected the Amlwch line, as the motor train that operated

7140-430: The duty of a guard/train manager/conductor . Passenger trains are part of public transport and often make up the stem of the service, with buses feeding to stations. Passenger trains provide long-distance intercity travel, daily commuter trips, or local urban transit services, operating with a diversity of vehicles, operating speeds, right-of-way requirements, and service frequency. Service frequencies are often expressed as

7259-402: The end of the 19th century, because they were cleaner compared to steam-driven trams which caused smoke in city streets. In 1784 James Watt , a Scottish inventor and mechanical engineer, patented a design for a steam locomotive . Watt had improved the steam engine of Thomas Newcomen , hitherto used to pump water out of mines, and developed a reciprocating engine in 1769 capable of powering

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7378-467: The end of the 19th century, improving the quality of steel and further reducing costs. Thus steel completely replaced the use of iron in rails, becoming standard for all railways. The first passenger horsecar or tram , Swansea and Mumbles Railway , was opened between Swansea and Mumbles in Wales in 1807. Horses remained the preferable mode for tram transport even after the arrival of steam engines until

7497-515: The engine by one power stroke. The transmission system employed a large flywheel to even out the action of the piston rod. On 21 February 1804, the world's first steam-powered railway journey took place when Trevithick's unnamed steam locomotive hauled a train along the tramway of the Penydarren ironworks, near Merthyr Tydfil in South Wales . Trevithick later demonstrated a locomotive operating upon

7616-470: The era of great expansion of railways that began in the late 1860s. Steel rails lasted several times longer than iron. Steel rails made heavier locomotives possible, allowing for longer trains and improving the productivity of railroads. The Bessemer process introduced nitrogen into the steel, which caused the steel to become brittle with age. The open hearth furnace began to replace the Bessemer process near

7735-470: The extra Gaerwen–Llangefni services was withdrawn. Amlwch's engine shed was closed on 14 September 1931, with all trains being worked from Bangor. As the economy recovered, the number of Gaerwen–Amlwch services was increased. The summer of 1938 saw ten down and eight up trains for passengers, with eleven each way on Saturdays. A dam was built across the Cefni river north of Llangefni in the late 1940s to increase

7854-515: The first commercial example of the system on the Lugano Tramway . Each 30-tonne locomotive had two 110 kW (150 hp) motors run by three-phase 750 V 40 Hz fed from double overhead lines. Three-phase motors run at a constant speed and provide regenerative braking , and are well suited to steeply graded routes, and the first main-line three-phase locomotives were supplied by Brown (by then in partnership with Walter Boveri ) in 1899 on

7973-522: The first freight train to Amlwch was on 10 September 1866, according to Amlwch's first stationmaster, Mr O. Dew. The line had been built single track throughout, with the only run-around loop provided at Amlwch, meaning that trains could not pass each other. To ensure safe working, the Staff and Ticket system was used in three sections: Gaerwen-Llangefni, Llangefni-Llanerchymedd, and Llanerchymedd-Amlwch, using A and B configured staffs alternately. No turntable

8092-505: The highest possible radius. All these features are dramatically different from freight operations, thus justifying exclusive high-speed rail lines if it is economically feasible. 26 %26 27 Vict. This is a complete list of acts of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for the year 1863 . Note that the first parliament of the United Kingdom was held in 1801; parliaments between 1707 and 1800 were either parliaments of Great Britain or of Ireland ). For acts passed up until 1707, see

8211-535: The idea of building a railway leaving the main line at Gaerwen , running north to Amlwch , west to Cemaes Bay , then south through Llanrhyddlad to rejoin the main line at Valley . This ambitious scheme did not gain enough support to proceed, although some landowners offered to exchange land for shares. Proposals changed into a railway from Gaerwen to Amlwch, with another meeting in Llangefni, on 1 August 1861. David Davies and his partner Ezra Roberts offered to build

8330-404: The infrastructure. Operation continued under various companies during the 20th century, but passenger services were withdrawn in 1964 as part of the Beeching Axe . Industrial freight services continued until 1993. The railway's tracks remain and local groups have demonstrated an interest in restoring services as a heritage railway . The sustainable transport charity Sustrans has proposed to use

8449-596: The late 1980s, but the idea was turned down. After a public meeting in Amlwch to gauge local support, Isle of Anglesey Railways Ltd (IoAR) was established in 1991 with the aim of restoring passenger services to the line. Special trains ran from Bangor to a temporary station at Amlwch on the spring and August bank holidays of 1992, and the 125th anniversary of the line's opening (a total of eight return trips). Pathfinder Tours subsequently ran an excursion from York to Llandudno and Amlwch in October 1993. The project's viability

8568-1218: The limit being regarded at 200 to 350 kilometres per hour (120 to 220 mph). High-speed trains are used mostly for long-haul service and most systems are in Western Europe and East Asia. Magnetic levitation trains such as the Shanghai maglev train use under-riding magnets which attract themselves upward towards the underside of a guideway and this line has achieved somewhat higher peak speeds in day-to-day operation than conventional high-speed railways, although only over short distances. Due to their heightened speeds, route alignments for high-speed rail tend to have broader curves than conventional railways, but may have steeper grades that are more easily climbed by trains with large kinetic energy. High kinetic energy translates to higher horsepower-to-ton ratios (e.g. 20 horsepower per short ton or 16 kilowatts per tonne); this allows trains to accelerate and maintain higher speeds and negotiate steep grades as momentum builds up and recovered in downgrades (reducing cut and fill and tunnelling requirements). Since lateral forces act on curves, curvatures are designed with

8687-587: The line approaching Llangefni later in October 1864, LNWR engineers were authorised to build the main line junction at Gaerwen, at the Anglesey Central Railway's expense. The line opened for freight as far as Llangefni on 16 December 1864. A special train carried the directors and friends from Bangor to a temporary station in Llangefni in 37 minutes. A banquet was held at the Bull Hotel for 100 guests, with celebrations continuing that evening in Bangor. The line

8806-474: The line at a cost of £ 6,000 per mile, complete except for rolling stock, or for £5,000 per mile, with the company to purchase the land and meet "preliminary and parliamentary expenses". This proposal won favour with the fledgling company, but it was not taken up. The London and North Western Railway (LNWR) (who had taken over the Chester and Holyhead Railway) were approached in 1862. The LNWR were not interested, so

8925-457: The line since: Diesel engines were used for the Octel freight after British Rail's withdrawal of steam engines. A railfan website notes Class 24 , Class 40 , and Class 47 as having been used for the freight services, as well as the 1983 special passenger services. The 1992 specials used Class 101 DMU units, and the 1993 special used Class 20 and Class 37 engines. The continuation of Octel Freight Traffic until 1993 ensured that not only

9044-454: The line was limited by a lack of funds. Russell asked the LNWR to adopt the line in August 1865, to no avail. The Anglesey Central Railway Act 1866 ( 29 & 30 Vict. c. cccxx) gave permission to raise a further £20,000, with loans of £6,600. After raising this capital, the line was opened to Llanerchymedd in 1866, with the temporary station at Llangefni replaced by a permanent structure half

9163-418: The line, or to lease or sell the line to the LNWR. Dickson did indeed undertake to operate services. He requested permission from the LNWR to run services through to Bangor, but they refused, and passengers had to continue to change at Gaerwen. The act authorised a branch from Rhosgoch to Cemaes , but this was not built. The Fairlie engine Mountaineer was in use on the line in April 1866, but by October 1867 it

9282-429: The locomotive-hauled train's drawbacks to be removed, since the locomotive need not be moved to the front of the train each time the train changes direction. A railroad car is a vehicle used for the haulage of either passengers or freight. A multiple unit has powered wheels throughout the whole train. These are used for rapid transit and tram systems, as well as many both short- and long-haul passenger trains. A railcar

9401-560: The main portion of the B&;O to the new line to New York through a series of tunnels around the edges of Baltimore's downtown. Electricity quickly became the power supply of choice for subways, abetted by the Sprague's invention of multiple-unit train control in 1897. By the early 1900s most street railways were electrified. The London Underground , the world's oldest underground railway, opened in 1863, and it began operating electric services using

9520-433: The mid-1920s. The Soviet Union operated three experimental units of different designs since late 1925, though only one of them (the E el-2 ) proved technically viable. A significant breakthrough occurred in 1914, when Hermann Lemp , a General Electric electrical engineer, developed and patented a reliable direct current electrical control system (subsequent improvements were also patented by Lemp). Lemp's design used

9639-598: The mid-1990s disrupted this process. The post-privatisation owner Railtrack 's asking price of £300,000 in 1996 required seeking grants from the European Commission . With no traffic or maintenance, the line started to become overgrown. In the meantime, Sustrans proposed the railway should be converted into a cycle route, similar to the Lôn Eifion cycle route which follows the path of the former Carnarvonshire Railway from Caernarfon to Afon Wen . In 1998–99 surveys of

9758-412: The noise they made on the tracks. There are many references to their use in central Europe in the 16th century. Such a transport system was later used by German miners at Caldbeck , Cumbria , England, perhaps from the 1560s. A wagonway was built at Prescot , near Liverpool , sometime around 1600, possibly as early as 1594. Owned by Philip Layton, the line carried coal from a pit near Prescot Hall to

9877-677: The opening of the Octel plant at Amlwch, 2 million tonnes of traffic had been conveyed from their freight terminal. A scale model was produced by Lima with this nameplate affixed. The name was removed in March 1990 and transferred to the Class 47 locomotive 47330, which was renumbered 47390 for a period, retaining the name. This locomotive was later rebuilt as a Class 57 , and renamed 'The Hood' by its new operator, Virgin Trains . A few special passenger services were subsequently operated, notably in 1969, 1983 and 1992/93. In 1993, Octel's daily freight traffic

9996-456: The possibility of a smaller engine that might be used to power a vehicle. Following his patent, Watt's employee William Murdoch produced a working model of a self-propelled steam carriage in that year. The first full-scale working railway steam locomotive was built in the United Kingdom in 1804 by Richard Trevithick , a British engineer born in Cornwall . This used high-pressure steam to drive

10115-606: The railway bridges showed their condition to be "better than expected". A petition of 7,000 signatures was presented to Anglesey County Council in January 1999, calling for better cycling facilities on the island, and particularly a cycle path from Amlwch to Gaerwen. Support for the railway option was demonstrated by a charter train named the Lein Amlwch Venturer , hauled by 6024 King Edward I , which ran from Crewe to Gaerwen junction on Saturday 23 January. Anglesey County Council

10234-475: The railway crosses Llyn Cefni , the island's second largest reservoir. The railway continues north-west over easier terrain towards Llangwyllog and Llanerchymedd , where it turns north, running to the east of Llyn Alaw toward Rhosgoch . It then turns north-east around Parys Mountain before reaching Amlwch . The railways arrived on Anglesey with the construction of the Chester and Holyhead Railway , of which

10353-411: The railway was financed independently. The Anglesey Central Railway Act 1863 ( 26 & 27 Vict. c.cxxviii) founded the company, with capital of £120,000. The chairman was William Bulkeley Hughes , MP for Caernarfon and local railway prospector. The ceremonial first sod was cut on 11 September 1863, with construction starting the following year by the contractors Dickson and Russell . With

10472-483: The railway was kept in order to serve this traffic. Local freight services ceased, and the electric staff system was withdrawn, so that only one train could be on the branch at a time, although that was sufficient for Octel's requirements. The double junction at Gaerwen was also remodelled. Once the freight trains were being worked by diesel locomotives , arrangements were made for the British Rail engines to operate all

10591-407: The route as a cycle path ( rail trail ). The Welsh Assembly Government, in partnership with Network Rail, commissioned a feasibility study into the reopening of the line, which started in early 2011. The railway branches off westbound from the North Wales Coast Line at Gaerwen , and turns northeast to descend into Malltraeth Marsh (Welsh: Cors Ddyga ), passing below Thomas Telford 's A5 and

10710-495: The section from Llanfairpwll to Holyhead opened in 1848, two years before the Britannia Bridge was finished. The Chester and Holyhead railway surveyed a branch to Llangefni in 1852, but chose not to proceed. George Stephenson notably reported that the line was not worth building. The idea of a local railway was still of interest to the people of Anglesey. A public meeting was held in Llangefni on 5 July 1858, to popularise

10829-441: The standard for railways. Cast iron used in rails proved unsatisfactory because it was brittle and broke under heavy loads. The wrought iron invented by John Birkinshaw in 1820 replaced cast iron. Wrought iron, usually simply referred to as "iron", was a ductile material that could undergo considerable deformation before breaking, making it more suitable for iron rails. But iron was expensive to produce until Henry Cort patented

10948-719: The summer timetables. This required introducing a new working section, and Llangwyllog became a staff station. As the new section was in the middle of a line, a third type of staff was required (a C configuration); one of only a few sections on the LNWR that did not use a type A or B staff. In 1916, the passing loop was used by one pair of passenger trains in the evening, with an extra down train (toward Amlwch) making seven down and six up trains per day. The railmotor train's services had grown to 24 single trips between Gaerwen/Holland Arms and Llangefni/Red Wharf Bay. The continuing shortages of World War I meant that in January 1917 many passenger services were to be cut to give more resources to

11067-580: The summers of 1963 and 1964 due to a shortage of DMUs. A bromine extraction plant was opened in Amlwch in 1953 by Associated Ethyl (soon renamed Associated Octel, and later part of the Great Lakes Chemical Corporation ). Chlorine produced at a plant in Ellesmere Port was brought by rail to Amlwch, which was used to extract bromine from sea water. The resulting ethylene dibromide was taken from Amlwch by rail as well. The company built

11186-470: The time, was Liverpool and Manchester Railway , built in 1830. Steam power continued to be the dominant power system in railways around the world for more than a century. The first known electric locomotive was built in 1837 by chemist Robert Davidson of Aberdeen in Scotland, and it was powered by galvanic cells (batteries). Thus it was also the earliest battery-electric locomotive. Davidson later built

11305-536: The track. Propulsion for the train is provided by a separate locomotive or from individual motors in self-propelled multiple units. Most trains carry a revenue load, although non-revenue cars exist for the railway's own use, such as for maintenance-of-way purposes. The engine driver (engineer in North America) controls the locomotive or other power cars, although people movers and some rapid transits are under automatic control. Traditionally, trains are pulled using

11424-466: The transport of ore tubs to and from mines and soon became popular in Europe. Such an operation was illustrated in Germany in 1556 by Georgius Agricola in his work De re metallica . This line used "Hund" carts with unflanged wheels running on wooden planks and a vertical pin on the truck fitting into the gap between the planks to keep it going the right way. The miners called the wagons Hunde ("dogs") from

11543-409: The war effort. The railways were slow to recover from the wartime hardships, and in 1921 there were six passenger trains to and from Amlwch, and only 18 single trips by the motor train. In 1923 Britain's numerous railway companies were grouped into the "Big Four" , and the LNWR's assets became part of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway (LMS). Holland Arms' functionality as a staff station

11662-431: The water supply available to the island. The new reservoir, Llyn Cefni , crossed the railway's trackbed, and a bridge was built to support it. A second reservoir, Llyn Alaw , was formed adjacent to the railway north of Llanerchymedd in the 1960s, but did not interfere with the line's alignment. Passenger numbers at Holland Arms station had fallen since the end of passenger services on the Red Wharf Bay branch. The branch

11781-401: The way to the plant. Amlwch station was demolished when the adjacent road was rebuilt. A nearby warehouse now houses a visitor centre with a model railway and exhibitions. Llanerchymedd station became the property of the local council, and reopened as a heritage centre, museum and community café in 2010. Other stations passed into private ownership. A spur was built near Rhosgoch to facilitate

11900-609: The wheels on track. For example, evidence indicates that a 6 to 8.5 km long Diolkos paved trackway transported boats across the Isthmus of Corinth in Greece from around 600 BC. The Diolkos was in use for over 650 years, until at least the 1st century AD. Paved trackways were also later built in Roman Egypt . In 1515, Cardinal Matthäus Lang wrote a description of the Reisszug ,

12019-601: The world in 1825, although it used both horse power and steam power on different runs. In 1829, he built the locomotive Rocket , which entered in and won the Rainhill Trials . This success led to Stephenson establishing his company as the pre-eminent builder of steam locomotives for railways in Great Britain and Ireland, the United States, and much of Europe. The first public railway which used only steam locomotives, all

12138-507: Was a soft material that contained slag or dross . The softness and dross tended to make iron rails distort and delaminate and they lasted less than 10 years. Sometimes they lasted as little as one year under high traffic. All these developments in the production of iron eventually led to the replacement of composite wood/iron rails with superior all-iron rails. The introduction of the Bessemer process , enabling steel to be made inexpensively, led to

12257-585: Was accomplished by the distribution of weight between a number of wheels. Puffing Billy is now on display in the Science Museum in London, and is the oldest locomotive in existence. In 1814, George Stephenson , inspired by the early locomotives of Trevithick, Murray and Hedley, persuaded the manager of the Killingworth colliery where he worked to allow him to build a steam-powered machine. Stephenson played

12376-509: Was built by Siemens. The tram ran on 180 volts DC, which was supplied by running rails. In 1891 the track was equipped with an overhead wire and the line was extended to Berlin-Lichterfelde West station . The Volk's Electric Railway opened in 1883 in Brighton , England. The railway is still operational, thus making it the oldest operational electric railway in the world. Also in 1883, Mödling and Hinterbrühl Tram opened near Vienna in Austria. It

12495-687: Was built in 1758, later became the world's oldest operational railway (other than funiculars), albeit now in an upgraded form. In 1764, the first railway in the Americas was built in Lewiston, New York . In the late 1760s, the Coalbrookdale Company began to fix plates of cast iron to the upper surface of the wooden rails. This allowed a variation of gauge to be used. At first only balloon loops could be used for turning, but later, movable points were taken into use that allowed for switching. A system

12614-501: Was built, as the intended Fairlie engines would not require one. When the LNWR provided engines, they used tank engines where possible, rather than an engine with a tender . Mona Mine, operating the copper works at Parys Mountain , switched from exporting ore by sea to by railway in 1865, two years before it reached Amlwch. Delivery prices per ton of ore were 25 shillings to London, 20 shillings to Birmingham , and 14 shillings and 2 pence to Liverpool , when carried from Gaerwen (by

12733-447: Was closed to all traffic in 1950, and Holland Arms closed on 4 August 1952. Under British Rail , many passenger services on the Amlwch branch operated through to Bangor , removing the need to change trains at Gaerwen. An early three-coach British United Traction (A.E.C.) diesel multiple unit train was trialled on the line in May 1953. The train was economical in fuel use, and did not require

12852-516: Was discussed with the Welsh Development Agency and Anglesey District Council , followed by negotiations in July 1993 with Railfreight Distribution to purchase the line. Octel offered a portion of its private railway for the building of a new station at Amlwch. IoAR initially hoped to start passenger services between Amlwch and Llangefni as early as 1994. The privatisation of British Rail in

12971-474: Was in use on the Neath and Brecon Railway , of which Dickson was also the contractor and whose traffic he was working. The Neath and Brecon's 0-6-0 Miers also operated on the ACR, under the name Anglesea . Neither of those engines was considered successful. The final section to Amlwch was surveyed by the now Major Rich in January 1867. After remedial work, it opened to passengers throughout on 3 June 1867, although

13090-535: Was introduced in which unflanged wheels ran on L-shaped metal plates, which came to be known as plateways . John Curr , a Sheffield colliery manager, invented this flanged rail in 1787, though the exact date of this is disputed. The plate rail was taken up by Benjamin Outram for wagonways serving his canals, manufacturing them at his Butterley ironworks . In 1803, William Jessop opened the Surrey Iron Railway ,

13209-479: Was light enough to not break the edge-rails track and solved the problem of adhesion by a cog-wheel using teeth cast on the side of one of the rails. Thus it was also the first rack railway . This was followed in 1813 by the locomotive Puffing Billy built by Christopher Blackett and William Hedley for the Wylam Colliery Railway, the first successful locomotive running by adhesion only. This

13328-534: Was only useful for the Red Wharf Bay branch, but a signalman was still required for all Amlwch services. In about 1925, LMS introduced a switching-out system that could turn the Gaerwen-Holland Arms and Holland Arms-Llangefni sections into one long section. This was of particular advantage in early mornings and evenings, when the only services were on the Amlwch line. The July 1924 timetable showed eight passenger trains each way between Amlwch and Gaerwen, with

13447-529: Was planning to buy the track in support of the railway in 2000, but was later reported as having withdrawn its support for IoAR in May 2001. Five months later Railtrack was placed in administration, and ownership of Britain's railways (including the Amlwch line) was transferred to Network Rail in October 2002. Railway Rail transport (also known as train transport ) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in tracks , which usually consist of two parallel steel rails . Rail transport

13566-418: Was replaced with Gaerwen-Holland Arms and Holland Arms-Llangefni sections, but the single line to Red Wharf Bay was operated as one section. The autotrain introduced to serve this branch also operated on the Amlwch line: when not running to Red Wharf Bay the motor train would operate between Llangefni and Gaerwen while the main branch train was on the round trip from Llangefni to Amlwch and back. The lack of

13685-509: Was surveyed by Captain Rich on behalf of the Board of Trade in February, and they approved the line for passenger traffic on 8 March 1865. Passenger services started four days later, with an engine and carriages loaned by the LNWR. In the six months to December 1865, the railway carried 18,839 passengers and 3,866  tons of freight (3,928  t ), excluding livestock. Further construction of

13804-690: Was tested on the Edinburgh and Glasgow Railway in September of the following year, but the limited power from batteries prevented its general use. It was destroyed by railway workers, who saw it as a threat to their job security. By the middle of the nineteenth century most european countries had military uses for railways. Werner von Siemens demonstrated an electric railway in 1879 in Berlin. The world's first electric tram line, Gross-Lichterfelde Tramway , opened in Lichterfelde near Berlin , Germany, in 1881. It

13923-609: Was the first tram line in the world in regular service powered from an overhead line. Five years later, in the U.S. electric trolleys were pioneered in 1888 on the Richmond Union Passenger Railway , using equipment designed by Frank J. Sprague . The first use of electrification on a main line was on a four-mile section of the Baltimore Belt Line of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad (B&O) in 1895 connecting

14042-405: Was the trackbed kept whole, but the majority of the rail infrastructure was still in situ. As such, the Amlwch line was well suited to preservation as a heritage railway , or see a return of mainline services. The continued role of Llangefni as an administrative and commercial centre led British Rail and Gwynedd County Council to consider restoring passenger services between Llangefni and Bangor in

14161-472: Was transferred to road haulage, for safety reasons, and traffic thus ceased on the line. The Octel plant closed in 2003, and has since been demolished. The ACR hired rolling stock from the LNWR for their inaugural services. When Dickson was operating the line from 1866 to 1868, he used the following engines: From 1868, the LNWR provided rolling stock again, until their acquisition of the line in 1876. The following types of engine have been noted as being used on

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