Porthmadog Gwynedd Wales - Work to upgrade the oldest operating railway workshops in the world is set to start in the next few weeks.
 
Once the work at Boston Lodge near Porthmadog is completed the Ffestiniog & Welsh Highland Railway (F&WHR) will be able to store all its locomotives under cover for the first time.
 
Preparing the locos for their day's work under cover will also become the norm.
 
Plans for the work were drawn up and approved by Gwynedd council last year.
 
F&WHR general manager Paul Lewin said the site will also feature a new carriage shed on the seaward side, offering weatherproof storage for two 10 carriage sets.
 
"The existing carriage shed will be dismantled and relocated below the cliffs at the rear of the site to provide storage for heritage carriages and a new three road loco prep shed will enable two Double Fairlies and a smaller loco to be prepped for use simultaneously. The new carriage shed will enable full WHR sets to be stored under cover and an extension to the 14 road inspection pit will enable more carriages to be examined and maintained while minimizing the need to move the set. New ashing out pits will be provided and a travelling crane will enable Garratt boilers to be removed for maintenance in the erecting shop. All entrance doors to sheds will meet the WHR loading gauge and it will be possible to house up to three NG/G16s under cover," he said.
 
Mr. Lewin stressed the completed layout will blend into the environment as much as possible.
 
"The initial stages of the work will cover road access, surface water drainage and sewage and will take place in the next 12 months. A phased approach to the development will be taken, with work only starting when funding has been secured," he added.
 
Built on the site of the quarry for the stone used in building the Cob from 1808 to 1811 Boston Lodge was named after William Madocks's parliamentary constituency in Lincolnshire.
 
From January 1809, during construction of the Cob, it served as office, stables, and barracks.
 
The Ffestiniog Railway Company Works was established there in 1847 for the repair of wagons and has expanded greatly around the original buildings.
 
It is now the oldest railway workshops still in operation and serving its original railway.
 
The first locomotives were built at the works in the 1870s and locos, wagons, and carriages have been built there ever since.
 
The last loco was completed in 2010.
 
Eryl Crump.