South Wales 'Metro' updates

[Envoy]

I live outside the area. Is it possible to summarise what the benefits are so far from a passenger perspective, particularly speed and frequency (as most passengers won’t know/care how trains are powered)?

They are still running a timetable set for the speed of sprinters. Once all the new stock is running, they will be able to speed up the schedules. The frequencies will increase once all the Class 398’s come into operation and the junction at Cardiff west near the Canton depot has been modified to sort out a choke point.

Passengers have seen a massive jump in the quality of the trains since the FLIRTS arrived on the valley lines. Level boarding with the gap being bridged is especially welcome and it saves the crew having to get out ramps. The electric traction of the 756’s is most welcome as it removes the air pollution created by the diesel powered sprinters and no vibration from underfloor diesels.

Mainline local trains such as those between Maesteg and Ebbw Vale via Cardiff tend to be Class 197’s these days and these again are much better than the sprinters - especially as like the FLIRTS, they have air conditioning. The only caveat is that especially where 2 car units turn up, they can be overcrowded. That problem should be solved when the 4 car FLIRTS get moved to this and the Cheltenham route.

 

[Cardiff123]

What I’ve also noticed recently is that there seems to be zero challenge from train crew to fare dodging children/ teenagers- not even challenging them verbally and warning them- I see it all the time in my valley. Does pose the question whether driver only operated trains with more staffed stations with gate lines would have been more efeffective.

This would require a fight with the unions, which so far, the Welsh Government have shown zero interest in. From the outset of taking over rail services in Wales in 2018, TfW committed to keep a safety critical guard on every train, which is partly why there haven't been any strikes on TfW services in recent years, when staff at the DfT controlled English TOCs were on strike.

Although I'm sure the 398 tram-trains are technically capable of running in DOO mode, but for the foreseeable future, the 398s will run in service with a guard on board.

 

[Envoy]

This would require a fight with the unions, which so far, the Welsh Government have shown zero interest in. From the outset of taking over rail services in Wales in 2018, TfW committed to keep a safety critical guard on every train, which is partly why there haven't been any strikes on TfW services in recent years, when staff at the DfT controlled English TOCs were on strike.

Although I'm sure the 398 tram-trains are technically capable of running in DOO mode, but for the foreseeable future, the 398s will run in service with a guard on board.

Sounds to me like they are running a free transport service for those so inclined to hop on/off at un-gated stations? Guards/Train Managers on other TOC’s do challenge people who have not paid or have the wrong ticket - so, why should TFW be any different - if indeed that is the case?

I also wonder about the wage cost for running lots of short trains with two highly paid staff on-board v revenue from the number of paying passengers.

 

[Kite159]

The problem with fare dodging children/teenagers is there is very little the guard can actually do to combat it, they can't even evict them at the first available station under safeguarding measures when they come across someone who has no ticket and claims to have no money. Even if revenue get involved, they can only realistically do unpaid fare notices, considering TfW can't take a 15-year-old feral kid to court (and even then nothing stopping the kid from giving a fake name/address)

But at least with the 398s, they won't have loos for fare dodgers to hide in

 

[Cardiff123]

Deleted

 

[Mr. Angry]

All anecdotal, I've seen a guard not letting kids onto the train until they bought tickets at Cross Keys.

 

[Envoy]

The problem with fare dodging children/teenagers is there is very little the guard can actually do to combat it, they can't even evict them at the first available station under safeguarding measures when they come across someone who has no ticket and claims to have no money. Even if revenue get involved, they can only realistically do unpaid fare notices, considering TfW can't take a 15-year-old feral kid to court (and even then nothing stopping the kid from giving a fake name/address)

But at least with the 398s, they won't have loos for fare dodgers to hide in

Surely, the best thing would be to get still images off the recordings made by the on-board cameras and send them to the local schools in order that they can be identified. Then bring in to school a local TFW manager to have ‘words’ with the fare dodgers and send letters to the parents. Doing nothing is a bit like being a head teacher and running a slack school where the kids can get away with anything.

The guards/train managers should also be telling people to take feet off seats - as well as dogs.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 14 Nov 2025 ==

All anecdotal, I've seen a guard not letting kids onto the train until they bought tickets at Cross Keys.

Good.

 

[John R]

The guards/train managers should also be telling people to take feet off seats - as well as dogs.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 14 Nov 2025 ==


Good.

What? People put their feet on dogs?

 

[AdamWW]

They're not doing too well on that so far. Passengers between Brecon and Cardiff use to be able to get the T4 all the way. Since TfW's latest changes they've had to change to the X4 at Merthyr bus station or walk to the railway station as the T4 doesn't go there. I don't think there are any through fares either.

I don't follow that.

The latest change is down to the way that tendered services currently work. Merthyr to Cardiff is run commercially by Stagecoach and the rest is tendered, so you only get through services when Stageoch happen to win the tender.

This sort of thing shouldn't happen under franchising but of course that hasn't happened yet.

I don't know if there is much TfW could have done to improve matters under the current framework, aside from not pretending that it was actually a good thing.

Well, they manage to offer through fares on the T1 and have it call at Carmarthen railway station (Aberystwyth bus and railway stations at the other end are adjacent).

Perhaps it's easier to get through fares onto trains than it is onto Stagecoach bus servies?

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 14 Nov 2025 ==

Passengers have seen a massive jump in the quality of the trains since the FLIRTS arrived on the valley lines. Level boarding with the gap being bridged is especially welcome and it saves the crew having to get out ramps.

The trains to Coryton seem to have got quite a bit busier since the new trains came in.

 

[MikePJ]

Guards/Train Managers on other TOC’s do challenge people who have not paid or have the wrong ticket - so, why should TFW be any different - if indeed that is the case?

TfW were unusual until recently in not having a penalty fare system, with many regular passengers choosing to buy tickets on the train from the conductor, even where ticket machines and booking offices are available at the stations. However, the penalty fare system is now (as of last year) in operation in the Cardiff and Valleys area, but the penalty is currently £20 rather than the £100+ charged by other TOCs. I think there's a softly-softly approach to reducing fare evasion, because previously there has been a culture of letting people travel for free (especially if they're not travelling to Cardiff) and this is going to be gradually tightened up.

 

[Dai Corner]

The latest change is down to the way that tendered services currently work. Merthyr to Cardiff is run commercially by Stagecoach and the rest is tendered, so you only get through services when Stageoch happen to win the tender.

This sort of thing shouldn't happen under franchising but of course that hasn't happened yet.

I don't know if there is much TfW could have done to improve matters under the current framework, aside from not pretending that it was actually a good thing.

They could have tendered a Brecon to Cardiff service, or made extending to/from commercially a condition.

Perhaps it's easier to get through fares onto trains than it is onto Stagecoach bus servies

I meant offering through fares, changing between bus and train at Merthyr railway station, like they do on the T1 in Carmarthen.

 

[AdamWW]

They could have tendered a Brecon to Cardiff service, or made extending to/from commercially a condition.

Ah yes. That would indeed be rather useful and it's not obvious why it hasn't been done.

They could have tendered a Brecon to Cardiff service, or made extending to/from commercially a condition.

I don't see how the former could be justified when there is an existing commercial service, and I suspect that the latter would have been a good way of ensuring they had no bidders, or at least not at an acceptable price.

 

[CapitalStar378]

The trains to Coryton seem to have got quite a bit busier since the new trains came in.

Imagine the possibilities when there's a reliable service and 4 tph. Also a park & ride at J32 should be added urgently, such an easy win for tackling congestion (money issues aside).

 

[MikePJ]

Back on the topic of metro progress: I saw via the TfW Communities facebook page that some bridge closures on the Rhymney line will start soon in order to allow for safe energisation of the wires:

( )
In the coming weeks, we’ll be electrifying the Upper Rhymney line. This means that the overhead wires will be live, and carry 25,000 volts, making it extremely dangerous for any persons to come close to the overhead wires or any associated part of the structures. This includes the supporting masts, switch feeds and cables.
To facilitate the energisation, we’ll be closing Lewis (Grammar school) bridge in Pengam from mid-November for a period of roughly eight weeks, till mid-January 2026. Alternative walking routes include the use of Cardiff Road leading to/from the A469, as well as Pengam Road, leading to/from the A469

 

[AdamWW]

Back on the topic of metro progress: I saw via the TfW Communities facebook page that some bridge closures on the Rhymney line will start soon in order to allow for safe energisation of the wires:

Previous bridge closures for safe energisation have been a day or so, not 8 weeks.

 

[Envoy]

Taff’s Well Tram-Train depot officially opened today:>

New £100m train depot unveiled where 36 trams will transform travel

Construction of the huge new train depot in Taff's Well has taken years, but it is now finally completed

www.walesonline.co.uk

"The South Wales Metro project, dubbed "the Welsh tube" aims to transform travel across the South Wales Valley’s through more frequent and faster journeys, made on new trains and tram-trains.

The project involved electrifying 170km of existing railway alongside upgrading the majority of stations."

 

[Daniel Boone]

Cogan Station Improvements

Help shape the future of Cogan station We need your help to improve Cogan railway station and its surrounding area. Please complete this short survey to tell us what it’s like using the station and

haveyoursay.tfw.wales

"We need your help to improve Cogan railway station and its surrounding area. Please complete this short survey to tell us what it’s like using the station and how we can make it better."

Does anyone have any thoughts?

 

[MikePJ]

Cogan Station Improvements

Help shape the future of Cogan station We need your help to improve Cogan railway station and its surrounding area. Please complete this short survey to tell us what it’s like using the station and

haveyoursay.tfw.wales

Does anyone have any thoughts?

Many, and I've expressed them in the survey!

I could potentially use Cogan station more, but I really hate getting there by bike, as none of the road routes from my part of Penarth are very nice for cyclists. Walking is okay, but it's still quite a long way and walking along a busy road.

It would be great if they could provide access to and from the Terra Nova Way area (via Tesco car park) somehow. I doubt the old underpass can be reused (pretty sure the other end has been built on), but it would be nice to see it re-landscaped rather than just appearing as a fenced-off piece of wasteland.

 

[Envoy]

Cogan Station Improvements

Help shape the future of Cogan station We need your help to improve Cogan railway station and its surrounding area. Please complete this short survey to tell us what it’s like using the station and

haveyoursay.tfw.wales

Does anyone have any thoughts?

I was going to fill in the survey but when I saw all the nosey profile questions asked when required to register, decided against it. Also note that this information is going to Granicus, an organisation based in Washington DC, USA. You will find this after all the miles of small print in the Terms & Conditions / Privacy.

 

[Daniel Boone]

I was going to fill in the survey but when I saw all the nosey profile questions asked when required to register, decided against it. Also note that this information is going to Granicus, an organisation based in Washington DC, USA. You will find this after all the miles of small print in the Terms & Conditions / Privacy.

You'd think there were a fair few survey tools offered by European based companies. I'd love to know the rationale behind choosing them. Good catch.

 

[tigermonstera]

Taff’s Well Tram-Train depot officially opened today:>

It looks like Taff's Well Depot will be named "Walnut Tree Depot":

“I’d especially like to thank the local community in Taff’s Well for their support and patience throughout the major construction project and for helping us name it locally as ‘The Walnut Tree’ Depot’.”

The name is also on the plaque that was unveiled at the opening event.

 

[Tomos y Tanc]

It looks like Taff's Well Depot will be named "Walnut Tree Depot":

The name is also on the plaque that was unveiled at the opening event.

After the Walnut Tree Viaduct, presumably.

As an aside, the 'wal' in walnut has the same meaning as the 'wal' in Wales. They both mean 'foreign'.

 

[John R]

After the Walnut Tree Viaduct, presumably.

As an aside, the 'wal' in walnut has the same meaning as the 'wal' in Wales. They both mean 'foreign'.

Nice. I vaguely remember the viaduct being demolished as a small boy as we made the fortnightly trip up the A470 to visit grandparents in Aberdare.

 

[chrisjo]

After the Walnut Tree Viaduct, presumably.

Walnut Tree Junction was at the south end of Taffs Well station, where the Rhymney Valley line diverged from the Merthyr line. The road between the depot and the new station carpark is built on top of the path of the Rhymney Valley line. A footpath continues along the trackbed and over the A470 just north of the new depot.

 

[Merthyr Imp]

Apparently Walnut Tree is an old name for the southern area of Taffs Well. Walnut Tree Junction was the original name of Taffs Well station, and before that Walnut Tree Bridge was the name of a road bridge over the canal.

 

[GraphitProjekt]

As an aside, the 'wal' in walnut has the same meaning as the 'wal' in Wales. They both mean 'foreign'.

it's the anglo saxon word for foreign, Romans introduced walnuts to early anglo saxons before the left northern Germany, so the nuts from the foreigners. It's also in Cornwall and Walloon

 

[Envoy]

Peter Brabham has an excellent photo of the Walnut Tree Viaduct on Flickr. The view is from the SE with what is now the Metro line in the foreground. One single brick pillar remains to this day.

Walnut Tree Viaduct Taffs Well north of Cardiff Wales by John Wiltshire

Sadly now demolished around 1969 only one brick pillar remains.

www.flickr.com

Walnut Tree Viaduct Taffs Well north of Cardiff Wales by John Wiltshire​

Just above the Ty-Nant Inn (by Pugh's Garden Centre), the line came off the viaduct and then through a short tunnel. It crossed Llantrisant Road (A4119) on the bridge still present at Rhydlava before continuing SW to cross the Ely Valley where the A4232 expressway is now located. It then went through a tunnel under Culverhouse Cross and on down to Barry.

More photos from the King’s visit to open the new Metro Depot can be seen here (page 3+):> https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/...es-king-charles-queen-32877875?int_source=nba

"The King also met with apprentices and long-serving TfW staff during the visit."

Goodness knows why this was not covered by the ITV & BBC Wales news programmes? (They seemed to be more interested in the fake admiral).

 

[The exile]

More photos from the King’s visit to open the new Metro Depot can be seen here (
Goodness knows why this was not covered by the ITV & BBC Wales news programmes? (They seemed to be more interested in the fake admiral).

It’s a good news story, that’s why!

 

[Tomos y Tanc]

More photos from the King’s visit to open the new Metro Depot can be seen here (page 3+):> https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/...es-king-charles-queen-32877875?int_source=nba

Goodness knows why this was not covered by the ITV & BBC Wales news programmes? (They seemed to be more interested in the fake admiral).

I think most people are far more interested in the fake admiral than they are in a run of the mill royal visit. It's just a much better story.

 

[John R]

In contrast the Times has very good coverage of the opening.