Volume Six - Pre-Victorian to the Present Day - Select Aspects - The Penarth Harbour Dock and Railway - Railway World Article - 1964 . . .

A further 1 mile 10 chains away is Waterhall Junction box, where the former Llantrisant No. 1 Railway makes a trailing connection. This is a single-track mineral line 7 miles long from Common Branch Junction, on the one-time Llantrisant & Taff Vale Junction Railway promoted by the Taff Vale in 1861, to connect Treforest with Llantrisant and the Ely Valley. A few chains beyond the junction is a signalbox and connection to Ely (Fairwater Road) Goods Yard and 1 mile 15 chains away is the Ely Paper Mills box and a siding connecting with one of the largest paper mills in the country.

Just before the paper mill the G.W.R. South Wales main line is crossed by an overbridge. The Penarth line continues on an embankment to Penarth Curve North Junction (already referred to), 1 mile 7 chains from Ely Paper Mills. This section is parallel to the G.W.R. line and included in the extensive works carried out by the G.W.R. in 1934 was a spur connecting the G.W.R. main line at a new signalbox, Leckwith Junction, with the Penarth line about ¾ miles from Ely Paper Mills. Between this point and North Curve is Ninian Park Halt, near Cardiff A.F.C. ground, which was built by the T.V.R. for football and excursion traffic. At North Curve box there converges the ex-G.W.R. north spur of the triangle, on which there are still extensive sidings. Canton carriage sheds (built 1934) and a diesel m.u. depot, but the sidings are now used mainly for main-line coaches. Some of the sidings on the Penarth line to south Curve (27 chains) are also used for storing coaches, as are the sidings on the third side of the triangle from Cardiff West to South Curve, where there are four running lines. Near South Curve at ground level is Sloper Road (Grangetown) goods and coal depot, the track from which rises to join the Penarth line at North Curve.

Continuing from South Curve with four running lines and more sidings, in 26 chains we reach Grangetown station and the junction for the Harbour line and (now disused) high-level connections to the Gas Works retort house. Next comes the Ely River Viaduct (already described) and Llandough signalbox, 74 chains from Grangetown, at the entrance to the extensive Llandough Sidings, which were built to serve Penarth Dock but are now used only for wagon storage. At the end of the sidings is cogan Junction, 46 chains from Llandough and 6 miles from Radyr Junction, where the Penarth Dock lines and Barry lines diverge, and Penarth Dock station. There is a large signal box built by the G.W.R. at Cogan Junction, but the Taff Vale box it replaced was larger and built high on the side of the cutting at this point. A halt was constructed at Llandough, about ½ mile from Penarth Dock, but it was closed during the 1914-18 war. There was a ¼ mile-long branch from Llandough serving a brick works.