HARD-WORKING volunteers clearing the new heritage trainline between Blaenau Ffestiniog and Trawsfynydd have faced some unusual barriers as they work.

Items which volunteers have had to remove include a sofa, a push-bike and even a brand-new toilet.

Following a protracted campaign that has been running for years, the eight-mile stretch between the two Meirionnydd communities will incorporate a steam railway which will wind its way through the stunning scenery of the Welsh Uplands and may even be open by next summer.

The last train ran in 1998 and the job of clearing the route has been an arduous task for the small band of volunteers who are steadfastly removing debris and vegetation from the train tracks.

Peter Bowers, one of the willing railway enthusiasts who is helping to clear the line, updated the Cambrian News on the project’s progress.

He said: “A lot of the effort has gone in between Cwmbowydd level crossing and our boundary with Network Rail at New Road bridge.

“The area has been treated as a dumping ground for a lot of the locals’ rubbish and just general litter throwing over many years, general items of waste being a sofa, a push-bike, a couple of wheelie bins and a toilet.

“Though who would want to throw a brand new toilet down onto the railway? We are a bit confused by the discovery but it was entertaining when we found it, to say the least!"

Read the full story in this week’s Meirionnydd edition of the Cambrian News, in shops now