In the second of our two-part railway special, Richard Uridge travels on the Heart of Wales line which runs the 121 miles from Shrewsbury to Swansea. It's a proper commercial railway, with little trains carrying commuters, shoppers and tourists through some of the most beautiful scenery in Britain.

It was originally built in the mid-19th century to connect the north-west of England with the ports of South Wales and the flourishing steel and coal industries. The line includes seven bridges and six tunnels and Richard explores the some of the small communities alongside the line around the old spa towns in the middle, for whom the railway provides a lifeline in an area which would otherwise be devoid of public transport.
Powys Digital History Project
Heart of Wales Line

Richard's first port of call is the pretty station of Llanwrtyd Wells - but it wasn't always so. Gateway to the smallest town in the UK, it used to be a dilapidated and rubbish-strewn site - the platforms were overgrown and the whole area had been sadly neglected. One resident decided that enough was enough and the community must do something about it. Chairman of the local council at the time was Ainsley Jones, who snapped into action and the first local collection raised just £200 - but it was enough to get the ball rolling and an action group was formed. They sought grants from a huge range of sources, co-opted the army to clear a particularly unpleasant patch of ground and the entire area was transformed - platforms weeded, hedges trimmed, new fences erected and flower beds redesigned. The work has been ongoing, hundreds of daffodil bulbs have been planted, with the help of the local cub scouts, and an avenue of trees planted along the fence on the down platform. The area to the rear of the station building was paved and has become a popular picnic area. The community has been so inspired that a gardening club has grown up from this tiny beginning. Today, after work totalling around £10,000, the station is immaculate with fresh paint and lots of flowers and flourishing wildlife. They enter the Wales in Bloom competition every year and have come second for three years running. Ainsley says they'll never win, because the station is still a bit on the wild side, but that's how they like it.
Wales in Bloom

At Pen-y-bont, Elizabeth Turner and her husband are restoring Maesyfed, a row of historic cottages. The first building on the site was a medieval farmhouse, but it was continually built on and eventually became a ramshackle row of cottages which show the variety of different local building styles down the centuries. The range of industry at Maesyfed was extraordinary: tailoring, a tearoom, a blacksmith, cobbling, a seed merchant, a garage, chick rearing, etc. There was even a state-of-the-art laundry in 1905 when the hotels in the new spa town of Llandrindod Wells needed to have their sheets and pillowcases dealt with - the laundry arrived on the railway.

Continuing the tradition of adapting the buildings to meet the needs of the time, the Turners are busy with plans for the next stage. They've already converted the old pressing room into a gallery space with a wonderful floor. This is a demonstration and trial for tiles made of end grain timber which, it's hoped, will reinvigorate the Welsh timber industry. Jorge Ordonnez designed the floor to reflect the weaving patterns within laundry baskets, and his brother Fernando now makes and plays traditional Colombian musical instruments which are on sale there. Eventually Elizabeth says she hopes the place will become a centre that encourages artists, craftsmen and designers to work together collaboratively.
Maesyfed