Abergele and Pensarn railway station is a station on the North Wales Coast Line, which serves both the town of Abergele and suburb of Pensarn in Conwy County Borough, Wales. It is between Colwyn Bay and Rhyl, and is from London Euston, measured via Crewe.
History
Opened as Abergele by the Chester and Holyhead Railway on 1 May 1848, the 'and Pensarn' suffix was believed to have been added when the station was substantially rebuilt in 1883, although many sources before that were already using the suffix. The station had been the location of two LMS caravans in 1935 and 1936 followed by three caravans from 1937 to 1939. Nine camping coaches were positioned here by the London Midland Region from 1954 to 1971 (eight only in 1954).
Resignalling
The station was originally served by loops off the main line in both directions. Although the eastbound loop was removed some decades ago, the westbound one remained in use until early 2017 - it was decommissioned over the weekend of 8/9 January. A replacement bus service was provided to Rhyl whilst the work was in progress, as westbound trains were not to call until the work was completed.Abergele & Pensarn North Cheshire Rail Users Group website article; Retrieved 11 January 2017 The platform was closed for the works from April 2017 and reopened to traffic on 12 March 2018. As part of the same modernisation scheme, the signal box here closed in March 2018, when new colour light signalling was commissioned between Colwyn Bay and Shotton.
Abergele train disaster
On 20 August 1868, the Irish Mail express collided with some runaway goods wagons containing paraffin oil which had been left on the running line between Abergele & Pensarn and Llandulas stations to allow a shunting manoeuvre. As the oil ignited on impact, the front coaches of the express caught fire. There were 33 fatalities.
Facilities The station is unstaffed and intending passengers must purchase tickets from the ticket vending machine on platform 2 prior to travel. Train running information is offered via CIS screens, customer help points and timetable poster boards, along with a payphone on platform 2. Step-free access is available to both platforms via ramps from the road bridge linking them. In 2018, new cycle racks and waiting shelters were installed.
The former booking office was refurbished for community use in 2021, funded by the Railway Heritage Trust. It is Grade II listed.
Passenger volume +Passenger volume at Abergele and Pensarn2004–052005–062006–072007–082008–092009–102010–112011–122012–132013–142014–152015–162016–172017–182018–192019–202020–212021–222022–232023–242024–25Entries and exits59,50458,24362,79964,01570,29671,11076,65084,48881,47681,15273,64270,93268,63270,11273,64076,00018,95458,55681,98294,890104,922 The statistics cover twelve month periods that start in April.
Services
The station is served by an hourly service on weekdays and Saturdays in each direction operated by Transport for Wales, which runs between Manchester Airport (via Chester and Warrington Bank Quay) to the east and Llandudno to the west. A few services between //Cardiff Central and also call at peak periods and in the late evening.eNRT May 2026 Edition, Table 077 (Network Rail)
On Sundays, the service is provided by Holyhead to Crewe trains, which call hourly each way from late afternoon (with a less frequent service until the early afternoon).
References
Bibliography
Further reading
External links
Abergele and Pensarn station on navigable O.S. map