Anger over new signage for ‘Snowdon Mountain Railway’
Nation.Cymru Staff
A new sign for Snowdon Mountain Railway at Llanberis Station has sparked criticism after appearing without any Welsh language branding.
The railway took to its Facebook page on the morning of 4 June 2026 to share now-deleted images captioned “All finished!” of the new sign, which reads ‘Snowdon Mountain Railway’, on the station’s green and yellow façade.
However, many commenters were quick to note the company had not included the Welsh-language translation of the company name, ‘Rheilffordd yr Wyddfa’, which appears across their social media.
“It’s a bit tone deaf given there is no Welsh at all. That’s very disappointing indeed,” a commenter wrote. “We’re fighting for our language and this chips away at our efforts. Would it have been too difficult to write Yr Wyddfa anywhere on that sign? Mae’n bwysig amddiffyn ein iaith a’r hanes (it’s important to protect our language and history).”
Another added: “I wouldn’t say finished due to the fact that it’s rather rude not to have it in Welsh.”
The Eryri National Park Authority, which does not manage the railway, announced in 2022 that it would begin to phase out the use of English names Snowdonia and Snowdon, instead using Eryri and Yr Wyddfa.
In November 2024 the authority then announced that the change would be made permanent, with ‘Snowdonia’ removed from their logo, due to wide support.
Businesses and writers have come under fire for continuing to use the park and mountain’s English names, including Ferrero for their ‘Snowdonia’ limited edition Nutella jars, while others have rebranded, including Eryri Snowdonia 360 (formerly Snowdonia 360), to embrace the mountain’s Welsh name.
The SMR operates several steam and diesel locomotives from Llanberis station which carry passengers 4.7 miles to the summit of Yr Wyddfa.
The company’s first iteration, Snowdon Mountain Tramroad and Hotels Company Ltd, was formed in 1894. The railway was completed in February 1896, and is now the “only public rack and pinion railway in the United Kingdom”, according to SMR.
The company rebranded to the Snowdon Mountain Railway in 1924 after the sale of the Royal Victoria Hotel, and also own and manage Hafod Eryri, the building at Yr Wyddfa’s summit completed in 2009 to replace the one designed by Sir Clough Williams-Ellis’ and finished in 1935.
More recently, SMR was acquired by Heritage Great Britain PLC, “an attractions company that operates numerous sites in the UK”, formed in 1999 and based in Liverpool. Heritage Great Britain also manage Land’s End and John O’Groats.
Despite the criticism, others were impressed with the new signage, writing “Lovely job that” and “Got to love all the Welsh crying over nothing”.
Snowdon Mountain Railway were contacted for comment.
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Yet another example of a, presumably, English firm (or a firm with an English colonialist mentality) disregarding and belittling our indigenous language – Welsh. It’s contemptable and disgusting. Don’t be in the least bit surprised if the sign is vandalised – the company will have brought it upon itself and fully deserves such treatment.
Siomedig- especially as SMR has benefited directly from Taxpayers funds with the Hafod building . What this row really exposes is not just disagreement over signage, but the limitations of Wales’ current Welsh language framework. At present, the Welsh Language (Wales) Measure 2011 and associated standards place clear duties on the public sector, but leave a large portion of the economy – including major visitor attractions, transport operators, hospitality and retail – governed largely by voluntary codes, planning expectations, or piecemeal conditions rather than consistent statutory obligations. That creates exactly the kind of inconsistency we are seeing here: Welsh is… Read more »