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But this seems to be saying that on weekdays they are removing one Coryton service (or maybe an unused path?) each way, while also removing all 4 existing morning peak paths in one direction while adding one going the other way, and removing all the evening peak paths in one direction only.
I had to think about it for a while, but I think I have the answer. The definition of “peak service” is, per the contract:
"Peak Services" means in respect of Service Group HL05 (a) Services Scheduled on any part of a Weekday (i) to arrive at Cardiff Central between 0630 hours and 0900 hours or (ii) to depart from Cardiff Central between 1600 hours and 1830 hours, and (b) Services Scheduled on any part of a Saturday to arrive at or depart from Cardiff Central between 0900 hours and 1700 hours, and "Peak" shall be construed accordingly;
I think that this is being interpreted to mean that only southbound trains count as Peak in the morning, and only northbound trains count as Peak in the evening. (The difference relates to the fee paid for use of the track, so it does have some implications, despite the fact that mostly one bit of TfW is paying another bit of TfW).
So in the table of slots, Coryton, Rhymney and Bargoed trains are all shown with peak trains southbound in the morning and peak trains northbound in the evening.
The latest press information on the closure of the Coryton branch mentions the 756s will start on that line in spring 2025. Tfw have withdrawn another two class 150 units so I think they need these 756s asap
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Another 398 is supposed to be getting delivered tomorrow morning to Taff's well depot according to the local Facebook railway groups
Another update this evening: Coryton will be shut from Monday until 20th October and that’ll result in Penarth trains only being half-hourly during that period.
Over the past months, Transport for Wales has increased its engineering work along the Coryton line in preparation for electrifying the line in early November 2024. This marks a significant milestone in the South Wales Metro programme and will allow TfW to introduce new trains on the Coryton...
news.tfw.wales
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I was wondering whether the four-car 756s would be sufficient to cover them, leaving the 3-cars to cover Penarth/Caerphilly/Coryton. If that’s the case it may be possible to just leave Sprinters on the Pontypridd-Bay service until the 398s replace them. (Edit: there are 17 four-cars and 7 three-cars)
I think that this is being interpreted to mean that only southbound trains count as Peak in the morning, and only northbound trains count as Peak in the evening. (The difference relates to the fee paid for use of the track, so it does have some implications, despite the fact that mostly one bit of TfW is paying another bit of TfW).
So in the table of slots, Coryton, Rhymney and Bargoed trains are all shown with peak trains southbound in the morning and peak trains northbound in the evening.
But in the previous version they seemed to be counting them as peak both ways. Now maybe they're using a different definition for the new version of the table - but in which case shouldn't the number of off peak services have gone up correspondingly?
Another update this evening: Coryton will be shut from Monday until 20th October and that’ll result in Penarth trains only being half-hourly during that period.
Reading between the lines they are running out of time and need this to keep to schedule.
It won't make anybody's travel less inconvenient but nevertheless I think it might go down better with a bit more honesty and an apology for the short notice.
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This also shows up the disadvantages of the current timetable vs the previous one.
A Coryton Line closure previously wouldn't wipe out half the Penarth services.
It's like the way the Bay line has gone from a self contained and fairly reliable 6 tph to an unreliable 4 tph that now quickly imports delays from elsewhere.
Interesting. So despite owning the lines and being the only day to day operator, they have to go through a bereaucratic exercise to find out who might object but don't have to actually provide details?
Unfortunately this is a stupid outcome of privatisation. They currently can't operate the tracks and trains together properly, one is TfW and one is TfW Rail which have to be kept distinct. Also imo stupid competition laws will probably prevent them from ever truly dropping this beurocracy because someone in theory can apply for stuff like open access on the CVL.
I suspect once a nationalised operator is 'legal' they'll be able to merge tfw rail and tfw a bit more but being able to not treat everyone equally would require different legislation.
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Aspects of the programme have latterly been de-scoped, reducing the engineering access required and permitting re-instatement of services.
This concerns me. I wonder if they're going back to no electrification north of bargoed or something. Perhaps the 756s batteries have better range than expected so they feel they can do a bit of value engineering. They've already added a number of extra catenary free sections since the original plans.
This concerns me. I wonder if they're going back to no electrification north of bargoed or something. Perhaps the 756s batteries have better range than expected so they feel they can do a bit of value engineering. They've already added a number of extra catenary free sections since the original plans.
Yeah - I had similar thoughts. The best-case reading of "de-scoping" is that less evening work is required than previously thought (for example, as a result of closing the Coryton branch for a fortnight to work on it continuously, they'll need fewer evening closures). But I do wonder if pressure to cut costs and finish the job before it drags on beyond 2026 will mean cuts in infrastructure. All the electrical feeding comes from a feed point at Heath, so if they did cut back the overhead lines on the northern end of the Rhymney line, they would likely still have to run 25kV cables alongside the track to provide a feed to the sidings at Rhymney so that stabled units can start the day with a full battery.
Looks like the contractors are installing a temporary walkway across the end of the track in the new platform so that passengers can access it from Lloyd George Avenue. That will let them close the current entrance whilst the old platform is rebuilt.
On rhe platform itself, some new silver columns have appeared, presumably for platform lighting.
This new platform is due to enter service at the beginning of November, but looking at the uncompleted work I suspect some of it will be fenced off, as the full length of the platform isn’t needed for the current train service.
Thanks for posting. There are some claims in the video that surprised me:
(1) The trains from Cardiff Bay that don't go to Pontypridd will go to Cardiff Central via Cardiff Queen Street (I thought they'd terminate at Queen Street).
(2) Butetown station is more or less complete (I thought there was a whole second platform to build).
(3) The Bay line is not due to be electrified (I thought it was being electrified south of Butetown).
Does anyone have any info on whether these claims are correct?
Thanks for posting. There are some claims in the video that surprised me:
(1) The trains from Cardiff Bay that don't go to Pontypridd will go to Cardiff Central via Cardiff Queen Street (I thought they'd terminate at Queen Street).
(2) Butetown station is more or less complete (I thought there was a whole second platform to build).
(3) The Bay line is not due to be electrified (I thought it was being electrified south of Butetown).
Does anyone have any info on whether these claims are correct?
Yeah, I agree with you on all three of those points -
1) in the 2025/26 version of the Metro scheme the Bay gets 6tph and they all go to Pontypridd (and then 2 each to Aberdare, Treherbert and Merthyr). In the interim trains will go to either Queen St or Pontypridd. But once Cardiff Crossrail Phase 1 opens then the Bay will have tram-trains to Central, but via Callaghan Square, not via Queen st.
2) Yes, there's a second line and platform to go in at Butetown. You can see the start of the second formation in some of his drone shots.
3) The Bay line is being electrified south of the Herbert St bridge, which is just north of Butetown. If you look at Butetown station from Lloyd George Avenue you can see a tubular pile-cap next to the concrete retaining wall for the platform - this will likely support a future mast or cantilever tower for the overhead wires.
Yeah, I agree with you on all three of those points -
1) in the 2025/26 version of the Metro scheme the Bay gets 6tph and they all go to Pontypridd (and then 2 each to Aberdare, Treherbert and Merthyr). In the interim trains will go to either Queen St or Pontypridd. But once Cardiff Crossrail Phase 1 opens then the Bay will have tram-trains to Central, but via Callaghan Square, not via Queen st.
2) Yes, there's a second line and platform to go in at Butetown. You can see the start of the second formation in some of his drone shots.
3) The Bay line is being electrified south of the Herbert St bridge, which is just north of Butetown. If you look at Butetown station from Lloyd George Avenue you can see a tubular pile-cap next to the concrete retaining wall for the platform - this will likely support a future mast or cantilever tower for the overhead wires.
Butetowns current platform looks like it's almost complete but as mentioned there is a whole second line and platform to go in, including a lift.
In the very original electrification plans before they decided to keep the existing bay station, I believe the plan was to use a fixed conductor bar for charging and not to bother electrifying the bay line. But now they definitely are electrifying the double track as far as the northern end of Bute town station. I'm assuming the reason it cuts there is to avoid wiring the cross rail junction.
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Some reports that the final business case for the Cardiff central 2040 capacity improvements is being presented soon and that a planning application will be submitted by the end of the year. Will be interesting to see what the planned integration between mainline central and cross rail central looks like. And more generally what changes for 'Metro Central' actually make the cut. Particularly if they can make platform 0 a proper platform.
No problem! The service pattern for the Aberdare/Treherbert/Merthyr lines is intended to be 2tph to Central and 2tph to the Bay, alternating, so there's a train every 15 minutes towards Cardiff. If you turn up at the station (at Treherbert, say) and the first train that comes isn't going to the right destination, then you could change at Pontypridd (or any station between there and Radyr) and wait on the same platform for another one coming along behind. Pontypridd should have 6tph to the Bay, 4 tph to Central via Llandaf, Cathays and Queen St, and 2tph to Central via Fairwater. Of course, if you take a Bay train and need to go to Central you can also change at Queen St for a train towards Barry or Penarth, but that does mean going down the subway and up again rather than waiting on the platform.
I know Chris who made the video struggled to get information out of TfW. He writes for Rail magazine and does a lot of features on HS2, but he honestly struggled on this one. I'll feed back to him.
I didn't think Butetown had two platforms but it's logical if they are going to get 6tph down there.
I know Chris who made the video struggled to get information out of TfW. He writes for Rail magazine and does a lot of features on HS2, but he honestly struggled on this one. I'll feed back to him.
I didn't think Butetown had two platforms but it's logical if they are going to get 6tph down there.
It mentions 3 stations between Cardiff and Newport and 6 new in total. Well the consultation before was on 5 new stations and had Cardiff East (Newport road) and Newport West. So I'm assuming this is confirmation (given they say it's based on a Welsh gov announcement) that Cardiff parkway is going ahead in some capacity.
It mentions 3 stations between Cardiff and Newport and 6 new in total. Well the consultation before was on 5 new stations and had Cardiff East (Newport road) and Newport West. So I'm assuming this is confirmation (given they say it's based on a Welsh gov announcement) that Cardiff parkway is going ahead in some capacity.
I'd actually say that a timescale that starts work in 2026 and finishes the first in 3 years from now is pretty reasonable, given where they are with the process. (ie they still have to get planning approval, and whatever GRIP, SPEED or whatever process Network Rail will require). Bear in mind that some realignment of the relief lines will be needed at each station, which will take some time, before work proper can start. (Ashley Down, also on a four track railway benefited in that the realignment was done a few years ago when the four tracking was done.)
As almost all housing is within a mile of it so easy walking distance.
I'm hoping it gets done soon, will reduce traffic heading for Severn Tunnel or even Newport.
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