Porthmadog, Beddgelert and South Snowdon Railway

The Porthmadog, Beddgelert and South Snowdon Railway was a narrow gauge railway intended to connect Porthmadog with the North Wales Narrow Gauge Railways link terminus at Rhyd Ddu. Although some of the line was constructed between 1901 and 1906, it never opened and eventually became part of the Welsh Highland Railway.HistoryThere were several attempts by the North Wales Power and Traction Company to promote lines between Portmadoc and Beddgelert with extensions at either end. These culminated in a proposal in 1901, for a narrow gauge electric railway to use three phase alternating current at about 630 volts using the system devised by Ganz of Budapest.Proposed routeThe PB&SSR would have run from the western end of Black Rock sands via Morfa Bychan, Borth y gest, Portmadoc and, using part of the Croesor Tramway, to Beddgelert to link with the South Snowdon Quarries (hence the title) in the Gwynant Valley. There was no intention initially to connect with the North Wales Narrow Gauge system which, at that time, terminated at South Snowdon near the village of Rhyd Ddu.No railway construction was started but, by 1903, a revised scheme was being put forward to link up with the North Wales Narrow Gauge Railways Beddgelert extension. This resulted in a further revised scheme being approved in 1904. It appears that there were legal problems with the powers given and, in 1906, these were reapproved with amendments.