No more will I go,
To Blandford Forum and Mortehoe,
On the Slow Train,
From Midsomer Norton and Mumby Road
No churns, no porter, no cat on a seat,
At Chorlton-cum-Hardy or Chester-le-Street,
We won’t be meeting again,
On the Slow Train.

Though the above song refers to the so-named ‘Beeching cuts’ of the 1960s, under which Britain’s railway network lost almost half of its stations and a third of its tracks, the line serving the Ogmore valley to Bridgend was officially closed before this. As the shift of reliance from coal to oil entered high gear after the Second World War, the mines of South Wales closed one by one, and their workers soon uprooted and moved elsewhere, to neighbouring valleys and beyond, in search of work. That, and the growing cost efficiency of public and private road transport, soon spelled the end for the Ogmore Vale railway line in May 1958. While most of the rails and platforms were removed, the path taken by the daily trains remained, and by 2005 had been tarmacked and turned into a purpose-built cycle and foot path.

This signal is a semaphore distant signal, used as standard on British railways until the advent of signals which solely used light. In the present position, it shows that approaching trains should exercise caution, as the signal further down the line is at a ‘stop’ position. Essentially, this is the amber of a traffic light just before it changes to red. I suppose that signal still applies, as any approaching trains would be warned that there are no longer rails on which to drive. But, helpfully, the cycle sign in the bottom right points to tea, beer, and a bus. :)

Hope you enjoy!