Snowdon Mountain Railway
The Snowdon Mountain Railway is a 4¾-mile rack-and-pinion mountain railway in Snowdonia (Eryri) National Park, ascending from Llanberis to the summit of Snowdon (Yr Wyddfa, the highest mountain in Wales and England at 1,085 m / 3,560 ft). It is the only rack railway in Britain, using the Swiss Abt rack-and-pinion system to climb gradients as steep as 1 in 5.5, and one of the most spectacular railway journeys anywhere.
The line opened in 1896, built to Swiss design and using Swiss-built locomotives. Unlike most preserved railways, the SMR has operated commercially and continuously since opening (apart from a brief WW2 closure) and is not strictly a heritage railway, it is a working tourist mountain railway in the same tradition as the Swiss rack lines, passed through several owners, and now operated by Heritage Great Britain. The original Swiss locomotives, however, are preserved and partially still in service for a 'heritage' service alongside modern diesel railcars.
The line uses an unusual gauge of 800 mm (2 ft 7½ in), chosen by the original Swiss engineers and not matched by any other British railway.
History
The Snowdon Mountain Tramroad and Hotels Co Ltd was incorporated in 1894 and the line opened on 6 April 1896. The opening day was marred by tragedy: locomotive No. 1 Ladas ran away on the descent and was destroyed in the only fatal accident in the line's history. The cause was attributed to ground subsidence affecting the rack alignment, and additional safety measures were introduced (notably the requirement for a separate brake on the carriage and reformulation of the rack-tooth profile). The line reopened a year later in 1897 and has operated every summer since, except for closures during the Second World War. Modern diesel railcars supplement the original steam fleet.
Original line history
The Snowdon Mountain Railway was opened in April 1896, built by the Snowdon Mountain Tramroad and Hotels Company to bring tourists to the summit of Snowdon — the highest mountain in England and Wales at 1,085 m (3,560 ft). The railway uses the Abt rack-and-pinion system, with a toothed rack rail between the running rails engaged by pinions on the locomotives, allowing trains to climb gradients of up to 1 in 5.5 that would be impossible for adhesion-only traction. The Swiss Locomotive and Machine Works at Winterthur built the original steam locomotives specifically for the line, applying Alpine rack railway technology to the Snowdonian environment. The SMR's summit station is the highest railway station in Britain and Wales, and on its opening day in 1896 the first locomotive descended without its train and ran off the end of the track at Clogwyn — an inauspicious beginning that delayed the full opening. The railway has operated continuously since May 1897, latterly supplemented by diesel and modern electric rack locomotives.
Stations and infrastructure
Llanberis is the lower terminus, near Llanberis village and at the foot of the Pen-y-Pass road. Hafod Eryri is the summit visitor centre, opened 2009 to replace the previous Clough Williams-Ellis 1936 building. Operations are entirely weather-dependent above Halfway: in poor visibility or high wind, trains terminate at Clogwyn or Halfway with a discounted return.
Route and stations
Map: © OpenStreetMap contributors
Special events and operations
The line operates only March to October due to mountain weather. Special services include Heritage Steam (using the original Swiss engines), early-morning sunrise trains, and dining in the heritage carriages.
Visitor information
Llanberis is reached via TfW bus from Bangor (LNER/Avanti from London via Crewe). The summit experience requires good walking shoes and warm clothing, the summit is exposed even on summer days.
