South Wales Metro System - ambitious plans detailed
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editor
hiraethified
Gromit
International Man of Misery
I know Treherbert and Tynewydd.
That extension will save a 15 minute walk.
It wouldn't have personally saved me anything because the 4 minute walk to the edge of Tynewydd would be less than the walk from where the new station would be. Not that I have any reason to do that trip anymore.
Hirwaun would make sense though.
editor
hiraethified
There only seems to be the tiniest of stubs left of the track north of Treherbert although saving a 15 min walk would probably make the location a lot more desirable for home buyers/businesses.
editor
hiraethified
Here's the supposed timetable for the new Wales franchise:
2019
2020
2022
2023
2019
- More capacity on Valley lines with additional refurbished trains. An extra five class 153 trains were brought in from May, with a further capacity increase due in December, says TfW.
- First new ticket machines at stations, and smart ticketing. The first new machines due end of 2019, smart ticketing is on a live trial and compensation and advance fare schemes are running.
- Refurbished trains for the North Wales Metro, including extra seats and power sockets. New carriages expected for the December timetable change.
- Pacer trains completely phased out and 12 class 170 trains introduced Class 170s will be introduced in December but pacer trains being kept on for busy routes into 2020. Extra trains to provide space for 6,500 more commuters a week from December.
- New train assembly starts at factory in Newport. Design approved and project on track, says TfW
- New services between Liverpool and Chester and additional Sunday services between Wrexham and Bidston, expected in December 2018, are now scheduled for March. TfW said it had introduced 215 services per week between Wrexham, Chester and Liverpool.
2020
- Start of new fare initiatives, including half price for 12 to 18-year-olds
- Keolis UK moves UK headquarters to Wales, booking app for passengers who need assistance launched and 22 customer ambassadors will work across the network
- New station will open at Bow Street in Aberystwyth in March
- Pay-as-you-go scheme launched for South Wales Metro (rolling out further in 2021)
- South Wales Metro's new service from Ebbw Vale to Newport, involving 150 more seats in the morning peak (300 by the end of 2022)
- First of the new 148 trains rolled out on the Cambrian, Marches and North Wales lines, and the West Midlands corridor
- Free wi-fi for trains and stations, promising "seamless" internet
2022
- Introduction of Metro vehicles. Four an hour will serve Aberdare and Merthyr and Treherbert by December
- New station opens at Crwys Road in Cardiff
- Seven extra services from Shrewsbury to Aberystwyth, 16 more Cardiff to Cheltenham and two on the Heart of Wales line
- Passengers will be able to board on the same level as the train across Cardiff and the Valley lines
- A new Liverpool to Cardiff service via Wrexham General and Shrewsbury
2023
- More Sunday services introduced
- New tri-mode (diesel/battery/electric) trains to operate from Coryton, Rhymney to Barry Island and Penarth to Bridgend via Cardiff
- Treherbert, Aberdare, Merthyr and Rhymney services increase to two per hour on Sundays
- Metro services come to Cardiff City line. The Loudon Square and Cardiff Bay stations open in Cardiff Bay, offering first on-street trams in Cardiff for 70 years
- First class introduced on Swansea to Manchester service
- A target of 100% by 2025 for secure station accreditation
Proper Tidy
Arsed
I find the whole cardiff metro thing a really dispiriting reminder of how fucking badly wales is ran. Massive investment into transport to ferry people back and forth from the valleys to cardiff. People having to travel hours for work, wages kept low in cardiff because half the workforce travel in from low wage low rent low house price areas out of desperation, rest of wales decays further with the lowest wages in UK as welsh govt investment continues to pour into building a souless capital while every other part of wales contains areas of poverty and deprivation up there with anywhere in europe. No decent jobs created in blenau gwent or rhondda etc, just some busses and trains to ship people out and in, meanwhile most of west wales don't have daily busses and rhyl and wrexham consistently appear in 'shortest life expectancy' articles. But it's ok, in cardiff bay they are knocking down a twenty year old leisure centre so they can rebuild it 30 metres away and pontcanna is full of vibrant cunts
Plumdaff
joy in people
I'd agree with a lot of what you say, but we need both. Cardiff is such a compact, largely flat city that it's fucking embarrassing how much cars are relied on to get around because getting across town is so difficult. Plus if they don't act soon Cardiff will descend into permanent gridlock. Can't we demand all of the above?
Proper Tidy
Arsed
Yeah demanding all of the above would be good. But while it's either/or I will never get my head around the strategy of developing cardiff into some bland business city and hoping the rest follows.
Agree about gridlock tbf but would prefer a solution that creates jobs in local communities so people didn't have to travel in over changing the method of travel.
I'm probably just being a grumpy arse though tbh
Supine
Newt Member
Cardiff is a business hub so improved travel is important to help it grow. The valleys need better transport links to gain access to Cardiff
As for the rest of Wales yes stuff needs to be done. There aren't any decent transport links from south to North FFS. Hurting Cardiff doesn't help other parts of Wales though.
As for the rest of Wales yes stuff needs to be done. There aren't any decent transport links from south to North FFS. Hurting Cardiff doesn't help other parts of Wales though.
Proper Tidy
Arsed
Fucks sake
editor
hiraethified
Never going to happen but it would be bloody ace:
Plaid Cymru promise trans-Wales railway in manifesto launch
Plaid Cymru promise trans-Wales railway in manifesto launch
Proper Tidy
Arsed
Still think this is a load of shit. Trains and buses in cardiff already light years ahead of rest of wales
editor
hiraethified
What? Most of Cardiff's Valley trains run on shitty, antiquated Pacer trains which are shockingly crap. Such is the lack of stock that half a century old Class 37 locomotives are currently being used: The very old trains coming back to the Valleys Lines.
And the lack of investment in the railways in Wales has been well documented - ‘Stark’ lack of Welsh rail investment revealed | Railnews | Today's news for Tomorrow's railway
Addressing a legacy of under-investment in Wales’ rail network - CECA
As the Welsh Affairs Committee presented their highly critical report on the current Wales and Borders rail franchise established by the Strategic Rail Authority in 2003, Ed Evans, Director of the Civil Engineering Contractors Association (CECA) Cymru, examines the Committee’s findings and looks...
www.ceca.co.uk
All of Wales' railways need improvements and there's nothing 'shit' about improving the areas with the biggest populations that need the most investment, while continuing to lobby for improvements all across the country.
Proper Tidy
Arsed
What? You really have no idea what you're talking about.
Most of Cardiff's Valley trains run on shitty, antiquated Pacer trains which are shockingly crap. Such is the lack of stock that half a century old Class 37 locomotives are currently being used: The very old trains coming back to the Valleys Lines.
And the lack of investment in the railways in Wales has been well documented - ‘Stark’ lack of Welsh rail investment revealed | Railnews | Today's news for Tomorrow's railway
Addressing a legacy of under-investment in Wales’ rail network - CECA
As the Welsh Affairs Committee presented their highly critical report on the current Wales and Borders rail franchise established by the Strategic Rail Authority in 2003, Ed Evans, Director of the Civil Engineering Contractors Association (CECA) Cymru, examines the Committee’s findings and looks...
I know they run on pacers and I'm familiar with the valleys line and the coryton line, remains case that most of cardiff has trains or busses running to centre every fifteen minutes or so and the rest of wales has fuck all. My mum doesn't drive and has chronic pain and they got rid of the bus from where she lives which only ran once a day anyway (9.30 returning at 15.30) about seven years ago. Nearest bus stop is two miles away. Like fuck cardiff needs another fucking railway hub, load of shit
nogojones
spelling is overrated
I feel your pain, but frankly bus services in Cardiff are pretty shit - we don't even have a bus station. I ain't got a clue where to catch a bus as the cunts move the stops every few weeks.
Given that most of the people in Wales lives near Cardiff we really should be sorting it out. All you gogs should go and have a word with Liverpool, I'm sure they'll sort yous out
Proper Tidy
Arsed
I feel your pain, but frankly bus services in Cardiff are pretty shit - we don't even have a bus station. I ain't got a clue where to catch a bus as the cunts move the stops every few weeks.
Given that most of the people in Wales lives near Cardiff we really should be sorting it out. All you gogs should go and have a word with Liverpool, I'm sure they'll sort yous out
Cardiff has highest pop density but it's not true that most people in Wales live near cardiff. But all for cardiff paying for its own transport from local authority funds
editor
hiraethified
By having a go at Cardiff and the Valleys for getting transport investment you're playing right into the Tories' divisive hands. It's not Cardiff's fault you've got shit public transport FFS.Cardiff has highest pop density but it's not true that most people in Wales live near cardiff. But all for cardiff paying for its own transport from local authority funds
Proper Tidy
Arsed
No it's the welsh govts. Which is labour btw. Well labour + a stray lib dem and former republican communist lord ellis thomas. It's nothing against cardiff. I like the place. If you can't see that this metro shite is a way of shipping people as a labour resource from low wage low cost deprived areas into cardiff and back out every day, to the detriment of everybody (long commutes, deprived areas staying deprived with fuck all done to address that leading to broken communities, wages depressed in cardiff because of cheap labour despite high housing and living costs) then that's not my fault.
Proper Tidy
Arsed
And it's not just shit public transport. It's shit everything. Wales is fucking rotting mate. It's a shitshow.
Proper Tidy
Arsed
Wales Online was celebrating wales not being the poorest part of the UK for first time in thirty years a few weeks ago. Cos it's been overtaken by north east england. Fucks sake. We've had devolution for over two decades now and the strategy for that entire time has been to pump everything into cardiff using some sort of geographical trickle down strategy and it's fucked the whole place. Including cardiff. Shit wages and high rents, great.
editor
hiraethified
New £100 million metro depot at Taff's Well incoming
www.walesonline.co.uk
Work has begun on £100 million metro depot at Taff's Well
Nearly 500 staff will be employed at the site
editor
hiraethified
Just seen this. the cutbacks begin:
Latest Plans for Electrification of the Valleys - Changes from original plan
No Longer being Electrified
Original PDFs - https://tinyurl.com/sfkkda4
Latest Plans for Electrification of the Valleys - Changes from original plan
No Longer being Electrified
- Queen St to beyond Crwys Road & Cathays
- Queen St to Cardiff Bay (formerly called Flourish)
- Treforest to North of Pontypridd
- Taffs Well Station both North and South (slightly)
- Merthyr Tydifil Station and South (slightly)
- Rhiwbina
- Pentre-Bach
- Dingle Road
- Ystrad Mynach to Bargoed
Original PDFs - https://tinyurl.com/sfkkda4
editor
hiraethified
Update
Aberdare – Hirwaun Rail Line Extension Update
Rhondda Cynon Taf Council says £100k has been awarded to progress this scheme, which is being developed as a Metro Plus Phase 2 scheme with funding being provided by a partnership between the Cardiff Capital Region City Deal and Welsh Government.
During 2019/20, the Council secured funding to undertake a Welsh transport appraisal guidance (WelTAG) 1 study on options to extend public transport from Aberdare Station to Hirwaun using the rail corridor. This work is being finalised and will provide a shortlist of options, which will be developed in more detail under the WelTAG 2 study to arrive at a preferred option and business case to progress detailed design. The scheme includes consideration of new stations at Trecynon, Hirwaun and at Tower strategic development site.
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editor
hiraethified
More info:
www.walesonline.co.uk
New train station to be built as part of £2m valleys line improvements
The funding could see a new station being developed at Upper Boat
editor
hiraethified
On a related note. Excellent news.
www.railmagazine.com
Plans advance for Welsh Rail Excellence centre
Welsh Global Centre of Rail Excellence, including electrified 110mph test track, could open in three years
editor
hiraethified
An extra track coming in 
www.networkrailmediacentre.co.uk
Crumlin’s River Ebbw railway bridge to get £5m upgrade
Passengers in south Wales could benefit from more services in the future as Network Rail is upgrading the River Ebbw railway bridge in Crumlin with the £5m upgrade starting next month.
www.networkrailmediacentre.co.uk
Sasaferrato
Super Refuser!
Would there be the passenger numbers to support that?
Anyone who is considering creating transport infrastructure would do well to have a look a look at the problems the Edinburgh scheme faced.
That said, the bit of the Edinburgh tram system that does exist seems to be well used.
