Colwyn Bay railway station

The station platforms in June 1986

Colwyn Bay station was opened by the Chester and Holyhead Railway in October 1849; originally named Colwyn, it was renamed Colwyn Bay in 1876.[1] The station is in an unusual location straddling a curved section of track. As a result, the track bed is cambered so that trains come to rest at the station platform at a significant tilt. In recent years enforcement action was taken by the Environment Agency when fuel oil spilled from the over-filled tanks of a diesel engine and percolated through the track bed and flowed onto the nearby beach, polluting it.

The current station consists of the platform faces that served the former fast lines (the section from here to Llandudno Junction was quadruple track until the 1960s). The platform faces to the slow lines were taken out of service and that on the "down" (westbound) side has been obliterated as a result of the construction of the A55 [2] dual carriageway (along with the old station goods yard). The main station building stands on what was the down island platform.

Ticket barriers are in operation at this station, as are special blue lights in the toilets to stop people abusing intravenous drugs. The station has a footbridge and sheltered seating, along with digital information screens and automatic train announcements on both platforms. Lifts provide full step-free access to each side. The ticket office is staffed all week, from 06:15 until 19:15 on weekdays and from 11:15 to 18:15 on Sundays.[3]

Mondays to Saturdays:

• Transport for Wales operates an alternate hourly service between Holyhead and Birmingham International or Cardiff Central via Wrexham General. A few early morning/late evening trains start/finish at Crewe rather than Birmingham or Cardiff.[4]
• Transport for Wales also operates an hourly stopping service between Llandudno and Manchester Piccadilly via Warrington Bank Quay. All of these services call at Abergele & Pensarn and Shotton, with some extended through to/from Manchester Airport.
• Avanti West Coast operates a number of services from Holyhead and Bangor to London Euston. Two weekday services operate between Birmingham New Street and Crewe to Bangor or Holyhead.

On Sundays there is a basic hourly service each way, westbound to Holyhead and eastbound to Crewe plus four through trains to London. A limited number of trains to Birmingham, Cardiff and Manchester also operate.

Preceding station	National Rail			Following station
Abergele & Pensarn		Transport for Wales North Wales Coast Line		Llandudno Junction
Rhyl		Transport for Wales Premier Service		Llandudno Junction
Rhyl		Avanti West Coast Holyhead/Bangor–London Euston		Llandudno Junction

• Mitchell, Vic; Smith, Keith (2012). Rhyl to Bangor. West Sussex: Middleton Press. figs. 30-39. ISBN 9781908174154. OCLC 859594415.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)

Media related to Colwyn Bay railway station at Wikimedia Commons

• Train times and station information for Colwyn Bay railway station from National Rail