Rail Freight: Wales and the Borders – Book Review

Over the past forty years rail freight operations in Wales and the neighbouring areas of England have changed dramatically. During the 1980s trains were still transporting goods produced in Wales itself, whereas by 2010 many of the goods were produced elsewhere and were simply being carried through Wales.

Rail Freight Wales and the Borders illustrates this changing scene. Written by Paul Shannon it was published in August 2022 by Key Books as Volume 4 of their Railways and Industry Series.

The rail freight Wales scene: four decades of major change

A brief single page introduction draws out the primary themes of the book. Divided into eight sections on a geographical basis, the main content takes us north and west from Newport to the North Wales coast.

The rail freight system in Wales during the 1980s was remarkably traditional, with coal trains plying their trade in South Wales valleys and steel products being moved between large works. Mid Wales displayed the remnants of decades-old pick-up services with locomotives hauling short or mixed goods trains to local depots. By 2020 this had largely disappeared. The near extinction of coal and steel trains was matched by closure of major oil refineries at Milford Haven. This means that container trains and those using Wales as a through route to the coastal ports predominate with a consequent change in locomotives, rolling stock and infrastructure.

Interesting rarities and infrastructure details…but some quality issues

Readers interested specifically in South East Wales will find about a third of the book is devoted to the area. Sections include Around Newport and Cardiff and the Central Valleys. A third chapter, The North and West Route also contains images from the old Newport, Abergavenny and Hereford line at Abergavenny and Pontrilas on the England-Wales border.

Among the pictures are some rarities including the last scheduled main line working of a 09 shunter (an 08 variant) between Llanwern Steelworks and Newport. Also interesting is an image of a 1960s Ruston and Hornsby 0-6-0 diesel hydraulic at Fifoots Point facility at Uskmouth. Moreover, the images contain background detail revealing just how much older infrastructure such as semaphore signalling remained until relatively recent times.

With many good railway photo albums on the market, quality is all important. Sadly, the standard of many images from the 1980s is not good. Almost all back and white, they often display a lack of clarity which makes it seem as though Wales was permanently covered in low lying mist!

In Summary

With many interesting images of freight operations from around Wales over the past 40 years this book will appeal to modellers and those interested in rail operations in general. Its Achilles’ heel, however is the poor quality of some images from the 1980s.

Outline Contents

• Around Newport
• Cardiff and the Central Valleys
• Lines from Bridgend and Swansea
• West Wales
• The North and West Route
• Shrewsbury and Mid-Wales
• Wrexham and Deeside
• The North Wales Coast

About the Author: Paul Shannon

Paul’s love of railways was triggered by taking the train to school in 1970. He developed a keen interest in rail freight and travelled widely to record the changing railway scene from the late 1970s onwards. He is the author or compiler of around 50 books, mainly covering different aspects of rail freight but also some general titles on railway history and infrastructure. He has also contributed more than 100 articles to enthusiast magazines and written around 40 DVD scripts, some covering railway operations in mainland Europe.

(from Pen and Sword Books)

Related reviews

Freight Trains of the Western Region in the 1980s by Kevin Redwood
The last of the South Wales Coal Trains by Chris Davies
Welsh Railways: A New Perspective by Jeff Morgan and Wayne Elsridge