Pontypool & Blaenavon Railway
The Pontypool & Blaenavon Railway has been running trains since 1983 and DMUs have been a part of the story since 1994. The railway is built on closed colliery lines typical of the Welsh Valleys. The line therefore includes stunning scenery and lively curves, gradients and weather!
The line's base it at Furnace Sidings, and the railway runs out to Whistle Halt and Blaenavon High Level, with a further branch to Big Pit opened in 2011. Recently the railway has been involved in much development as the local authorities seek to bring the economic benefits of a heritage railway to the area; consequently the early 2010’s have seen much development in the form of line extensions and new buildings.
The Gwent DMU group were resident between 1994 & 2020 and owned two Class 108 sets. After 2001 the line was also home to a Class 117 set. This was later sold to the railway and now is the only DMU set to remain.
The line's use of DMU's in traffic has been sporadic and it has now been many years since any vehicles operated in service. There are hopes that the Class 117 set will one day be restored and return to public use, but its restoration has so far been undertaken on a stop-start basis, having to slot in between other projects sharing limited funds and volunteer resources.
| 51351 Class 117 DMBS |
| 51397 Class 117 DMS |