They’ll do it up before bikes are allowed in (Picture: Wales News Service)

At the moment, this derelict tunnel looks more like a mine shaft than somewhere you want to venture into on a Sunday afternoon.

But soon, this tunnel linking two Welsh valleys could become the longest underground cycle route in Europe.

It has laid disused for 50 years, but is set to reopen with a different purpose after safety checks revealed it’s still in a good state.

Surveyors are ‘optimistic’ it can be restored throughout its entire length.


The Victorian tunnel was shut down together with dozens of other lines and hundreds of stations in the 1960s.

It has been derelict for 50 years (Picture: Wales News Service)

The survey team was so impressed with the 3,148 metre-long tunnel they took pictures to show it still in good condition as it stretched away into the distance.



Survey teams will now carry out full inspections of the tunnel between the Rhondda and Afan valleys funded by a £90,000 community grant.

The Rhondda Tunnel project has attracted massive support from the public and Welsh stars including Hollywood actor Michael Sheen.

It is currently owned by Highways England who are willing to hand it over.

(Picture: Wales News Service)

Rhondda Tunnel Society chairman Stephen Mackey said: ‘Who would have thought we would be within touching distance of a major breakthrough in the project.

‘The tunnel will undoubtedly be a major tourist attraction and will need space to host large events of all kinds.’

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The tunnel used to carry coal trains under the mountains from the mines of the Rhondda to the ports of Swansea Bay, until its closure in 1968 and the entrances to the tunnel at both ends have long been buried.

Mr Mackey said: ‘The surveys have reported that the tunnel is in remarkably good condition considering that it has been buried and largely forgotten for almost 50 years.

The tunnel when it was in use for trains carrying coal (Picture: Wales News Service)

‘The tunnel is very special, partly because of its great length but mainly because of the huge support from local communities.’

The tunnel would be the longest cycle tunnel in Europe – and second only to the 4,000m Snoqualmie Tunnel near Seattle in the U.S.

The main survey will see a team of skilled tunnelling engineers carry out a thorough inspection to find every defect and estimate a cost to remedy them.

It was opened in 1890 during the coal boom after a five-year building project overseen by the tunnel’s chief engineer Sydney William Yockney, a pupil of Victorian engineering kingpin Isambard Kingdom Brunel.

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