Directly connecting England and Wales, running underneath the longest river in the United Kingdom, the South Wales Main Line is one of the most important cross border routes in the country, as featured in the beautiful new South Wales Coastal route for Train Simulator.
The South Wales Main Line branches off from the Great Western Main Line to allow a direct connection between London and the South of Wales. The line was opened in two stages - the first exclusively in Wales, running from Swansea to Chepstow in 1850; the second section was in England, branching off from Royal Wootton Bassett towards Patchway in 1903.
Crossing the River Severn was always an engineering challenge, with trains initially heading north from Swindon to traverse into Wales, joining the South Wales Main Line at Chepstow. Construction of the four-mile Severn Tunnel began in 1873, and by 1886 it became the fastest route between the two countries, making the ‘Great Way Round’ only a backup way of crossing the Severn, for example when the tunnel was closed.
Key features:
- 39 mile South Wales Coastal main line between Bristol Temple Meads and Bristol Parkway to Cardiff Central, via the Severn Tunnel
- Arriva Trains Wales Class 175 ‘Coradia’
- Great Western Railways Class 43
- Freightliner Class 70
- Freightliner HHA Bogie Coal Hopper
- Freightliner FEA/B Container Flats
- Freightliner KTA Pocket Wagon
- Scenarios for the route
- Quick Drive compatible
- Download size: 2,284mb
