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Bringing back Platform 5 at Cardiff Central as a bay platform for terminating services from the West would help with this, and it almost happened during the Cardiff Area Signalling Renewal 10 years ago, but it didn't happen, because of, obviously, funding.

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Boris Johnson's government came up with the "Great British Railways" name, during the initial post-Brexit years, when there was a strong dose of Johnson's signature "boosterism" added to everything the UK Government did, to prove we were better than the rest of the world at absolutely...

So glad that TfW and ScotRail trains won't be subjected to this dreadful livery. It looked awful when originally unveiled and looks just as awful in real life. The loss of the GWR brand and livery to GBR will be a real shame.

Not sure where to put this, so dropping it in here. Mark Hooper, Plaid Cymru MS for Vale of Glamorgan & Bridgend, has been announced today as the Deputy Minister for Transport in the new Welsh Government. Ministers are not allowed to favour their constituency areas, but it'll be interesting to...

Funding for the CVL all came from various sources, but the funding was finite. UK Government contributed the least, originally just £125m. There was funding from the Cardiff Capital City Region. The Welsh Government got money from the last round of EU Structural funding that Wales (and...

The problem with abandoning the 398s is that it's not just the 398s that would be abandoned. Without the 398s, the Taffs Well depot would be mothballed, any aspirations for on-street running in Cardiff (which is a large part of Cardiff Crossrail) would be gone, 4tph to the Heads of the Valleys...

I don't know, but if a major fault is found that grounds the entire fleet, then I guess it's a possibility? The 756s entered service on the Treherbert, Merthyr Tydfil & Aberdare lines in November 2024, because the infrastructure was ready and the 756s had been delivered and were ready, but the...

Also, every time there's a major fault discovered, the clock is reset on fault free running miles needed to pass each unit into service. So presumably, following this latest fault, the clock has been reset back to zero. The first appearance of James Price in front of the transport &...

So there's no tables on the 398s? The interior looks modern, but basic and functional. On the Pacers, there were gaps between the seats, even without armrests......

That's a very bold statement to make at this stage. I hope the 398s perform well and are a success, but I think by far the trains that get the award for being TfW's best ever trains are the 231s and 756s.

Possibly, but without wires, it depends on how long it could manage on just battery power. My guess is not very long at all.

There's currently no signal or crossover at Barry to terminate services from the VoG from the west. Platform 3 at Barry allows services from Cardiff to terminate at there, and in theory could allow a shuttle between Barry and the Island, but considering the trains for Barry in future will be...

Another 756/1 testing or training run, Rhymney to Barry to Bridgend tonight. Hopefully these runs will mean there's a chance of 756s starting in service on the VoG this summer. https://www.realtimetrains.co.uk/service/gb-nr:V04585/2026-04-28/detailed#allox_id=0 1777552308 Are there any regular...

I've lost count of the articles I've read over the last 3 years, quoting TfW sources that 398 testing / crew training is due to start "this spring / summer / autumn / winter". Whilst I hope the 398s are eventually a success, I don't see the benefit in just re-announcing every few months that...

Just speculating, it could be because of through passenger flows from Llantwit, Rhoose and Barry to Queen Street. Also no doubt operational reasons come into it (platform space at Central etc)

Yes, Welsh Govt must take money out of other devolved budgets, such as health and education, if it wants to fund rail infrastructure improvements that Westminster has refused to fund. Where as Scotland and Northern Ireland get funding to spend directly on rail infrastructure included in their...

Presumably the only option TfW have if the 398s are indefinitely delayed, is bringing all of their 153s out of storage to cover mainline services in South Wales, and possibly Bridgend to Barry to Cardiff services, if all of the 150s are gone and the 398s are still sat at Taffs Well.

OK, so where's the honesty from TfW with the 398s? Instead, every few years, they've just re-announced that the 398s are starting testing, presumably hoping that it's forgotten that the year before, the exact same announcement was made. Given that so much of TfW's final fleet plans depend on...

Whatever the truth behind the 398s, a quick search of TfW's news archive reveals that in June 2023, the 398s were entering testing. https://news.tfw.wales/news/new-electric-tram-trains-in-testing-for-south-wales-metro Then in April 2025...