Progress on the stretch beyond the river at Betws Garmon initally awaited completion of a separate contract on behalf of Hyder plc, owners of Welsh Water. A major water main (carrying water from Llyn Cwellyn) had occupied the trackbed through the Bryn Gloch caravan park, and it was repositioned closer to the road, under which it now passes adjacent to the church. Hyder let the contract to manage this work to Messrs Laing in November 2000. The water main diversion work was carried out by Laing's with support from another contractor, Mulcair Ltd of Caernarfon. By March 11th 2001 a large quantity of water main pipe had been delivered for this work, and was stored near Pont Betws. However Foot & Mouth disease restrictions delayed the main work of the water main diversion contract, other than preliminaries. In mid-June work restarted in earnest, with contract plant present, and a traffic control on the road by the entrance to Bryn Gloch and St. Garmon's Church. Rapid progress had been made by early July, with the new main in place under its new road crossing, and the traffic control removed. The water main job was done by mid-August 2001.

Following completion of this contract, the railway delayed its own contractor's works at Bryn Gloch until the autumn, to minimise disturbance to the caravan park through the main 2001 camping season. Work restarted in mid-November, as seen in the views below (pictures: WHLR Ltd). The trench was for an electrical supply cable whose previous overground position was low enough to obstruct the railway works to be done here. Its new route runs to the west of the railway site. The trench work was completed in early December.

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The Old Bryn Gloch Bridge

The disused original overbridge at Bryn Gloch has been replaced by a new, wider one, used by caravans needing to move in and out of the part of the caravan park which lies to the west of the railway, which passes through the caravan park quite close to its road entrance. This is an example of the accommodations reached with the railway's neighbours as part of the Transport & Works Order procedures. Bryn Gloch is a site where land use has changed entirely since the days of the old WHR; previously it was a farm, and the small old bridge gave access to fields, as well as carrying a public footpath. In the closure period it fell out of use in favour of a level roadway crossing the trackbed, and became so overgrown that it was quite possible to walk past it without realising there was a railway bridge there.

Original contractors Triact, who carried out the works north of Pont Betws, were succeeded (owing to pressure of work) by Jones Brothers of Ruthin, who were previously one of the Phase 2 contractors. This firm started work on site on January 7th 2002. A work site known as Tros-y-Gol was established at the southern end of Contract 3A (see separate page); this was the contractor's base for construction back past the waterworks and through Bryn Gloch.

On November 25th 2001 the old bridge was seen with construction plant perched on its western ramp (below).

Pre-demolition clearance by February 10th 2002 made the arch of the bridge much more visible than for some time. Even disregarding the way its floor level had been raised by the residues of the previous 60 years, the very small dimensions of the bridge were evident.

In the following week, the roadway access to the parts of the caravan park to the west of the railway was diverted to a new temporary route to the Waunfawr side of the old bridge, which saw further clearance and the start of its demolition; the right-hand picture below shows where the approach ramp on the western side had been removed.

Another week later, the greater part of the old structure had been brought down.

By March 9th, only part of the eastern abutment remained, and the trackbed through the site of the old bridge had been rolled level.

The eastern abutment had been reduced to rubble by April 6th. Stone from the old bridge was recovered for possible re-use, but the brickwork proved to be too fragile, and mostly crumbled away.

The building of the new bridge is featured on its own page.