Valleys & Cardiff Local Routes

Valleys & Cardiff Local Routes (Welsh: Llwybrau Lleol y Cymoedd a Chaerdydd) (formerly Valley Lines) is the busy network of passenger suburban railway services radiating from Cardiff, Wales. It includes lines within the city itself, the Vale of Glamorgan and the South Wales Valleys.[1]

Railway lines in the Welsh valleys
Hirwaun Treherbert Rhymney Ynyswen Ebbw Vale Town Aberdare Merthyr Tydfil Treorchy Pontlottyn Cwmbach Ebbw Vale Parkway Ton Pentre Pentre-bach Ystrad Rhondda Tir-Phil Fernhill Troed-y-rhiw Llwynypia Cwm Mountain Ash Merthyr Vale Tonypandy Brithdir Dinas Rhondda Bargoed Penrhiwceiber Abertillery Porth Quakers Yard Trehafod Llanhilleth Abercynon North Gilfach Fargoed Abercynon Pengam Pontypridd Hengoed Treforest Newbridge Treforest Estate Ystrad Mynach Taff's Well Llanbradach Coryton Energlyn and Churchill Park Whitchurch Crosskeys Rhiwbina Aber Radyr Caerphilly Birchgrove Risca and Pontymister Ty Glas Lisvane & Thornhill Llandaf Llanishen Cathays Heath Low / High Level Danescourt Rogerstone Cardiff Queen Street Pye Corner Fairwater Newport Waun-Gron Park Welsh Marches line Cardiff Bay Cardiff Central Severn Tunnel Junction River Taff South Wales Main Line to Bristol Parkway Grangetown Caldicot Ninian Park Chepstow Dingle Road Cogan Penarth Eastbrook Wales England border Dinas Powys Lydney Cadoxton Gloucester Barry Docks Cheltenham Spa Pontyclun Barry Llanharan Barry Island Pencoed Rhoose Cardiff International Airport Llantwit Major Bridgend South Wales Main Line to Swansea Wildmill Sarn Tondu Garth Maesteg (Ewenny Road) Maesteg

The services are currently operated by Transport for Wales. In total, it serves 81 stations in six unitary authority areas: 20 in the city of Cardiff, 11 in the Vale of Glamorgan, 25 in Rhondda Cynon Taff, 15 in Caerphilly, 8 in Bridgend and 5 in Merthyr Tydfil.[2]

Services on these routes are provided by Class 142, 143 and 150 DMUs, and are typically end-to-end, in that they run from one branch terminus, through Cardiff Queen Street station, to another branch terminus, e.g. from Pontypridd to Barry Island.

The major hubs of the network are Cardiff Queen Street and Cardiff Central. Other hubs are Pontypridd, Bridgend and Barry.[3]

Electrification

On 16 July 2012 the UK Government announced plans to extend the electrification of the network at a cost of £350 million. This was at the same time of the announcement of electrification of the South Wales Main Line from Cardiff to Swansea. This would also see investment in new trains and continued improvements to stations.[4]

The investment will require new trains and should result in reduced journey times and cheaper maintenance of the network. Work was expected to start between 2014 and 2019, but has since been pushed back to between 2019 and 2024.[5]

Reopening of the Vale of Glamorgan Line

A stretch of the Vale of Glamorgan Line, on which passenger services were closed under the Beeching Axe, re-opened for passenger service, with services from Cardiff Central to Bridgend, via Barry, Rhoose Cardiff Intl. Airport and Llantwit Major. These services were originally advertised to start in April 2005, but commenced on 12 June 2005.[6][7] Previously services only went as far as Barry.

Lines

The Valley Lines network and surrounding routes

The colours used below are from the official network map (see External links). Stations in bold are major interchanges for the network.[2]

Butetown Branch Line	City Line	Coryton Line	Vale of Glamorgan Line
Cardiff Queen St. Cardiff Bay	Cardiff Queen St. Cardiff Central Ninian Park Waun-Gron Park Fairwater Danescourt Radyr	Cardiff Central Cardiff Queen St. Heath Low Level Ty Glas Birchgrove Rhiwbina Whitchurch Coryton	Cardiff Central Grangetown    Dingle Road    Penarth Cogan Eastbrook Dinas Powys Cadoxton Barry Docks Barry    Barry Island Rhoose Cardiff Int. Airport Llantwit Major Bridgend

Merthyr Line	Merthyr Line	Rhondda Line	Rhymney Line
Cardiff Central Cardiff Queen St. Cathays Llandaf Radyr Taffs Well Treforest Estate Treforest Pontypridd Abercynon Quakers Yard Merthyr Vale Troed-y-rhiw Pentre-bach Merthyr Tydfil	Cardiff Central Cardiff Queen St. Cathays Llandaf Radyr Taffs Well Treforest Estate Treforest Pontypridd Abercynon Penrhiwceiber Mountain Ash Fernhill Cwmbach Aberdare	Cardiff Central Cardiff Queen St. Cathays Llandaf Radyr Taffs Well Treforest Estate Treforest Pontypridd Trehafod Porth Dinas Rhondda Tonypandy Llwynypia Ystrad Rhondda Ton Pentre Treorchy Ynyswen Treherbert	Cardiff Central Cardiff Queen St. Heath High Level Llanishen Lisvane & Thornhill Caerphilly Aber Energlyn and Churchill Park Llanbradach Ystrad Mynach Hengoed Pengam Gilfach Fargoed Bargoed Brithdir Tir-Phil Pontlottyn Rhymney

Routes

Generally trains run from one line to another, joining at Cardiff Central eliminating the need for changing trains there. However they may not run for the whole length of the line.[8] Services run between:

• Bridgend/Barry Island and Merthyr Tydfil/Aberdare - incorporating the Vale of Glamorgan and Merthyr Lines
• Penarth and Rhymney/Bargoed - incorporating the Vale of Glamorgan and Rhymney Lines
• Radyr and Coryton - incorporating the City and Coryton Lines
• Cardiff Central and Treherbert - incorporating the Rhondda Line only
• Cardiff Queen Street and Cardiff Bay - incorporating the Butetown Branch Line only

Surrounding lines

The following lines also serve Cardiff and the South Wales Valleys but are not considered part of the network by Transport for Wales.

█ Maesteg - Cheltenham	█ Ebbw Valley Railway
Cheltenham Spa Gloucester Lydney Chepstow Caldicot Severn Tunnel Junction Newport Cardiff Central Pontyclun Llanharan Pencoed Bridgend Wildmill Sarn Tondu Garth Maesteg (Ewenny Road) Maesteg	Cardiff Central Pye Corner Rogerstone Risca and Pontymister Crosskeys Newbridge Llanhilleth Ebbw Vale Parkway Ebbw Vale Town

See also

• South East Wales Metro
• Rail transport in Cardiff
• List of Valley Lines stations
• List of railway stations in Wales

External links

• Detailed summary of all the Valley Lines
• Arriva Trains Wales
• Arriva Trains Wales Network Map includes Valleys & Cardiff Local Routes Network Map
• BBC News: New stations in £155m rail plans

References

1. http://www.networkrail.co.uk/browse%20documents/StrategicBusinessPlan/RoutePlans/2008/Route%2015%20-%20South%20Wales%20Valleys.pdf
2. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 25 May 2011. Retrieved 20 May 2008.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
3. Cardiff Central and Queen Street are where all services pass through and are interchanges to the national network. Pontypridd and Barry are the two stations with the largest passenger numbers outside of Cardiff and they are only served by this network. See respective Wikipedia pages.
4. "Rail electrification to Swansea and south Wales valleys welcomed". BBC News Wales. 16 July 2012. Retrieved 16 July 2012.
5. "Cardiff And Valleys Station Upgrades". Network Rail. 16 May 2018. Archived from the original on 17 May 2018. Retrieved 16 May 2018.
6. "Vale of Glamorgen". Railfuture.
7. "Airport rail link 'open in 2005'". BBC News. 4 May 2004. Retrieved 9 April 2010.
8. http://www.arrivatrainswales.co.uk/WorkArea/showcontent.aspx?id=5952