Radyr Railway Station

Radyr railway station is located at the bottom of the hill at the eastern end of Radyr village, alongside the River Taff and just next to the Taff Trail walking and cycling route that links up with Cardiff city centre.
Once an important transport link for industries in the Glamorgan valleys, it’s now just a commuter station and the old sidings are used for parking and housing estates.
When you arrive you’ll see three platforms in action, linked by an overhead bridge. There’s someone manning the station to sell tickets during peak morning hours. Platform 1 is for those heading into Cardiff Central on the Rhondda and Merthyr lines — the journey takes about quarter of an hour, with trains arriving about every quarter of an hour as well. Platforms 2 and 3 are used both for trains heading in the opposite direction, away from Cardiff, and as a terminus for the City line.

Lydney station serves the small industrial town of Lydney, on the eastern edge of the Forest of Dean. Although it is not anything to look at now, it has a long history.
The first railway in the area was built very early a tramroad for carrying coal opened from the Forest to Lydney Docks, passing close by the station, in 1813. The main Cardiff– Gloucester line was built in 1851, and a station provided at the present location (then some miles from the town). In 1869 the tramroad was converted to a traditional railway, and a station provided adjacent to the main line station both became known as Lydney Junction.
A new line from this junction was built in 1879 across the River Severn to Sharpness on an impressive viaduct of 21 spans. Alas, this closed in 1960 when a ship collided with the bridge and demolished two of the spans, and the whole bridge was dismantled between 1967 and 1970.
To-​day, Lydney station is a fairly basic unstaffed halt, with small waiting shelters, electronic departure boards, a large car-​park and that’s about it. There’s not even a footbridge you cross by the level crossing next to the station, and there are (steep) ramps up to the platforms. It’s served by the infrequent (hourly or less) service from Cheltenham to Cardiff, most of which are now extended west to Maesteg.
The main of interest to-​day is that it is adjacent (5 – 10 minutes’ walk) from the preserved Dean Forest Railway station at Lydney Junction, and provides for rail interchange between the two. The DFR’s station is also pretty basic, but does have a ticket office and toilets, as well as extensive sidings with all sorts of locomotives (mostly diesel) awaiting restoration. Details at: