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South Wales Main Line

Stations (from east to west) Swindon for Golden Valley Line for Great Western Main Line Bristol Parkway Patchway Pilning Severn Tunnel Junction for Gloucester to Newport Line Newport for Gloucester to Newport Line for Welsh Marches Line Cardiff Central for Cardiff City Line for Coryton Line for Maesteg Line for Merthyr Line for Rhondda Line for Rhymney Line for Vale of Glamorgan Line Pontyclun Pencoed Bridgend for Maesteg Line for Vale of Glamorgan Line Pyle Port Talbot Parkway Briton Ferry Baglan Neath Skewen Llansamlet Swansea for Heart of Wales Line for West Wales Line

See also: Transport in Wales

The South Wales Main Line is a branch of the Great Western Main Line in the UK. It diverges from the main line at Wootton Bassett near Swindon, first calling at Bristol Parkway, after which the line continues through the Severn Tunnel into South Wales. High speed trains (known as InterCity 125 trains in the days of British Rail) usually terminate at Swansea, where there are connections to West Wales, but an occasional train runs from Paddington through Swansea to Carmarthen.

Contents 1 History of the line 2 Services 3 Places served 4 References

The original route of the Great Western Railway between London and South Wales left the Bristol-bound Great Western Main Line at Swindon, proceeding via Stroud, Gloucester and Chepstow before rejoining the line as we know it today at Severn Tunnel Junction. This gave rise to the nickname 'Great Way Round'.

In 1886, the opening of the Severn Tunnel brought the opportunity of a more direct route to South Wales, and trains from Swindon to Newport and beyond were routed via Bristol and the Severn Tunnel. This route leaves the one we know today at Wootton Bassett near Swindon rejoining it close to Patchway station.

The route used today was established in 1903 with the building of what is often known as the Badminton Line. This involved the construction of about 33 miles of new track including two tunnels at Alderton and Sodbury between Wootton Bassett and Patchway. Not only did this provide a more direct route for traffic to and from South Wales, the gradient was easier for coal trains to negotiate, and it was perceived that the line would be a boost to what was, at the time of building, the expanding port of Fishguard, which was the GWR's connection to a point of departure for the United States of America by liner.

Services on the line include First Great Western's InterCity express services between Swansea and London Paddington. A regional service, branded Swanline, operates between Swansea and Cardiff.

The line serves the following cities and towns (towns in bold are served by high speed train services):

• Reading
• Didcot Parkway
• Swindon
  • connection with Great Western Main Line and Golden Valley Line
• Bristol Parkway
  • connection with Cross-Country Route
• Patchway
• Pilning
• (Severn Tunnel)
• Severn Tunnel Junction
• Newport
  • connection with Welsh Marches Line and line to Gloucester
• Cardiff Central
  • connection with Valley Lines services
• Pontyclun
• Pencoed
• Bridgend
  • connection with Maesteg Line and Vale of Glamorgan Line
• Pyle
• Port Talbot
• Baglan
• Briton Ferry
• Neath
• Skewen
• Llansamlet
• Swansea
  • connection with West Wales Line and Heart of Wales Line

• Kevin Robertson and David Abbott (1988). GWR The Badminton Line. Sutton Publishing Ltd. 

edit Railway lines in Wales:
Main lines:	Gloucester-Newport Line   North Wales Coast Line   Shrewsbury-Chester Line   South Wales Main Line   Welsh Marches Line
Valley lines:		Butetown Branch		City Line		Coryton Line		Ebbw Valley Line		Maesteg Line
		Merthyr Line		Rhondda Line		Rhymney Line		Vale of Glamorgan Line
Rural lines:	Borderlands Line   Cambrian Line   Conwy Valley Line   Heart of Wales Line   West Wales Line

v • d • e  Railway lines in South-West England and the "Great Western" zone :
Main lines:	Cross-Country Route • Great Western Main Line  Bristol-Taunton line • Cherwell Valley Line • Cornish Main Line • Gloucester-Newport Line • Exeter-Paignton "Riviera" Line • Reading-Plymouth line • South Wales Main Line • Wessex Main Line • West of England Main Line
Commuter lines:	Severn Beach Line   Slough-Windsor & Eton Line
Rural lines:	Exeter-Barnstaple "Tarka" Line • Exeter-Exmouth "Avocet" Line • Golden Valley Line • Heart of Wessex Line • Henley Branch Line • Looe Valley Line • Marlow Branch Line • Par-Newquay "Atlantic Coast" Line • St Ives Bay Line • Tamar Valley Line • Truro-Falmouth "Maritime" Line