Proposed new railway stations in Wales

[John_Miles]

This has appeared on the BBC Wales website

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-politics-39733717

 

There is an election on the way so it could be part of that process. My friends in the rail industry tell me that new stations on the Newport - Cardiff line would reduce line capacity and therefore they are not supportive.

 

[Penlan]

I think just running some trains later in the evening, especially after International Matches might help   

 

BTW, good luck tomorrow and Sunday with the book, and Icon.

[woodenhead]

Isn't Newport to Cardiff all 4 track mainline, with electrification and less freight there must be scope to increase capacity and allow more people the option to use trains?

[Fat Controller]

This has appeared on the BBC Wales website

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-politics-39733717

 

There is an election on the way so it could be part of that process. My friends in the rail industry tell me that new stations on the Newport - Cardiff line would reduce line capacity and therefore they are not supportive.

The Cardiff stations would presumably be on the Relief Lines, which are much less heavily used these days, due to the decline in freight traffic. 

I presume the Landore station would be on the Neath side of Landore Viaduct, giving the possibility of access to the Liberty Stadium. The old station would only be of use to people who didn't need to use car or bus connections, as the roads around it aren't good. Cockett has similar problems, and is at the bottom of a deep cutting.

[beast66606]

Llangefni is on the Amlwch branch - whilst a new station would be great, re-opening the line may help passengers wishing to actually move off the station.

[TheSignalEngineer]

Llangefni is on the Amlwch branch - whilst a new station would be great, re-opening the line may help passengers wishing to actually move off the station.

Any station for Llangefni on the main line would probably be no closer time-wise than Llanfairpwll station.

[96701]

It isn't just the platforms though. There are things to consider such as road vehicle access which could make a new station more viable than trying to 'improve' an existing nearby one. I have no idea how easy it is get to Llanfairpwll station, nor whether or not it is easy to park there, but a new station could attract new access roads and new car parks, thereby encouraging more people out of their cars for long distances.

[The Johnster]

The SWML ones, especially those between Newport and Cardiff and presumably on the relief lines, all sound like viable projects that will generate traffic, quite a lot in the case of St Mellons where a fast public transport route to Cardiff city centre will be greatly welcomed and appreciated.  I will personally find a Newport Road/Rover Way station, presumably at Pengam road bridge, a useful facility; time saved by not having to get into Central and changing on to mainline services at Newport will make upline journeys much more attractive.

 

Freight traffic is still heavy in South Wales compared to some areas, though a shadow of it's former self from even 20 years ago, but is undoubtedly in decline and paths on the reliefs between Severn Tunnel Junction and Cardiff are becoming much more available than they were.  Already 'local' services such as Ebbw Vale and Cheltenham trains will not be greatly inconvenienced by calling at the new stations, and I would suggest that Magor, Ebbw Junction/Duffryn, and Marshfield where there is plenty of space might be considered; localities where large housing developments have taken place over the last 50 years and both have poor road links.  Marshfield has no decent bus service to Newport, never mind Cardiff!  Some Bristol stoppers could use the new stations to advantage as well.

 

My view is that the new stations are A Good Thing.

[Fat Controller]

I wonder if the one at Llanwern would use the 'Service Lines', which run on the seaward side of the Relief Lines; these would be closer to the new housing developments on the site of the former 'Hot End' of the steelworks site. This bit of South Wales already generates a lot of commuter traffic to Bristol, so it would make sense for the Cardiff- Bristol stoppers to call there, and at Filton Abbey Wood.

Pre-WW2, my mother and her little brother would travel from Pembrey and Burry Port to Magor to spend the summer holidays with their grandparents; it would be nice to see the station revived.

[John_Miles]

I think just running some trains later in the evening, especially after International Matches might help   

 

BTW, good luck tomorrow and Sunday with the book, and Icon.

 

Sandy - thanks for the good wishes. We had around 30 people there and sold more than 30 books so I am happy. Not sure what the RMWeb rules are on promoting your own book but my new book on the Swansea Vale is now out - see Lightmoor Press for details. It's written in the language of Shakespeare and using some of the same words (like "and", "the"). Shall I compare thee to a 2F, Thou are more lovely - I sure he would have written such things if born around 350 years later.

[coachmann]

Llangefni is about 4½ miles away from the nearest working railwayline. Does the announcement mean the Amlwch Branch is to be reopened as far as Llangefni?  (Llandudno - Llangefni?????) It is quite a thriving village these days with a modern Ford showroom and servicing centre and industrial complex.

[The Stationmaster]

I wonder if the one at Llanwern would use the 'Service Lines', which run on the seaward side of the Relief Lines; these would be closer to the new housing developments on the site of the former 'Hot End' of the steelworks site. This bit of South Wales already generates a lot of commuter traffic to Bristol, so it would make sense for the Cardiff- Bristol stoppers to call there, and at Filton Abbey Wood.

Pre-WW2, my mother and her little brother would travel from Pembrey and Burry Port to Magor to spend the summer holidays with their grandparents; it would be nice to see the station revived.

 

If they did that would involve some very hefty signalling costs as the service etc lines have never been signalled to passenger standards.  Overall Llanwern strikes me asa  but daft unless land is taken to provide a whopping great car park - there is far more housing near the Magor site although parking space would be difficult to create there.

[Fat Controller]

If they did that would involve some very hefty signalling costs as the service etc lines have never been signalled to passenger standards.  Overall Llanwern strikes me asa  but daft unless land is taken to provide a whopping great car park - there is far more housing near the Magor site although parking space would be difficult to create there.

I had noticed on Quail that both Up and Down Service Lines are trapped at both ends; what would be required to make them fit for passenger services? There's a lot of new housing, alongside commercial and light industrial development, either under construction or planned, on the site of the old steel-making end of Llanwern, as well as on the old slag-heaps to the south and east.

Magor's fairly constricted in terms of parking provision; to provide any sort of decent parking beyond set-down only would require clearing the woodland south of the railway, then stabilising the marshy ground.

[chrisf]

I'm guessing that 'Ely Mill/Victoria Park' would be on the main line east of the erstwhile site of Ely Main Line and the point where the City Line crosses.  It would sit astride a two track section of line and impede through traffic to an extent far in excess of its value.

 

Chris

[The Johnster]

I had noticed on Quail that both Up and Down Service Lines are trapped at both ends; what would be required to make them fit for passenger services? There's a lot of new housing, alongside commercial and light industrial development, either under construction or planned, on the site of the old steel-making end of Llanwern, as well as on the old slag-heaps to the south and east.

Magor's fairly constricted in terms of parking provision; to provide any sort of decent parking beyond set-down only would require clearing the woodland south of the railway, then stabilising the marshy ground.

 

The service lines were originally built (1961?) as a combination of permissive block and through sidings protected by stop boards IIRC.  Speed is restricted throughout to 15mph.  A complete relaying would be needed to raise the speed to something more passenger appropriate, possibly a problem at the curves at each end, all facing points would have to provided with facing point locks, and new, absolute block, signalling provided.  And OHLE of course.  I would imagine cash for the project is being very enthusiastically  controlled, and that therefore the new Llanwern station will be on the relief lines, which are already signalled appropriately and, while not being in any sense fast, allow higher speeds; they are already often used by passenger trains.  I agree that the service lines are nearer to the new housing, but doubt if they will be used for the new station.

[The Johnster]

I'm guessing that 'Ely Mill/Victoria Park' would be on the main line east of the erstwhile site of Ely Main Line and the point where the City Line crosses.  It would sit astride a two track section of line and impede through traffic to an extent far in excess of its value.

 

Chris

I would have thought it more likely to be a new 'City Line' station, part of the valleys network and clear of the main line where, as you say, it will impede traffic on what is a pretty busy stretch of double track fast main line.  The 'City Line' scenario makes it more expensive to build, up an embankment, and access from the Cowbridge Road side, surely the one likely to be busiest, is via a footbridge across the main lines which makes disabled access less than ideal, but no worse than Fairwater.  I also think a new station on the Rhymney line, Crwys Road Bridge, would be a viable traffic generator.

 

But both this and the above reply about Llanwern are assumptions on my part, and I have been wro>%, w@*?g, sorry, can't write or say that word when it applies to myself: I have been 'differently right' before!  The full details of the plans and not yet in the public domain, and of course it may never happen!

[The Johnster]

I wonder if the one at Llanwern would use the 'Service Lines', which run on the seaward side of the Relief Lines; these would be closer to the new housing developments on the site of the former 'Hot End' of the steelworks site. This bit of South Wales already generates a lot of commuter traffic to Bristol, so it would make sense for the Cardiff- Bristol stoppers to call there, and at Filton Abbey Wood.

Pre-WW2, my mother and her little brother would travel from Pembrey and Burry Port to Magor to spend the summer holidays with their grandparents; it would be nice to see the station revived.

 

Agree about the Bristol traffic; anywhere between Lydney and Newport has been Bristol commuter territory since the old bridge opened.  I know of a bloke living in Chepstow who cycles to Cribbs Causeway as his daily commute, must be fun on the old bridge in a winter gale with the lorries rocking it about all over the place...

[Zomboid]

There's an election coming (WAG as well?).

Let's see if these are on anyone's agenda in July.

[96701]

Agree about the Bristol traffic; anywhere between Lydney and Newport has been Bristol commuter territory since the old bridge opened.  I know of a bloke living in Chepstow who cycles to Cribbs Causeway as his daily commute, must be fun on the old bridge in a winter gale with the lorries rocking it about all over the place...

Cycle path is well away from the road as shown down this page:

http://www.thecyclingmayor.com/severn-bridge-sportive/

[TheSignalEngineer]

It isn't just the platforms though. There are things to consider such as road vehicle access which could make a new station more viable than trying to 'improve' an existing nearby one. I have no idea how easy it is get to Llanfairpwll station, nor whether or not it is easy to park there, but a new station could attract new access roads and new car parks, thereby encouraging more people out of their cars for long distances.

To my mind the best place to put a new station would be fed from the big road island where the link between the A5 and A55 as just to the east of Gaerwen. Then of course there is the old Gaerwen station site itself. I don't know what the current use is but the last time I was there a few years ago one part was a builders yard and the rest was up for letting.

 

The old Gaerwen to Amlwch branch is still shown on the Chester to Holyhead pages of the Network Rail Sectional Appendix, but the Table A entry for the line itself has recently been 'withdrawn'. The Local Instructions page has the note 

 

"This line must not be used without the specific permission of the Network Rail Area Operations Manager, Liverpool.

Dated: 07/10/06"

 

The connections to the Main Line have long gone, however the line of route looks as if it is still intact but the track was largely overgrown by 2009. The rails do still appear in some places on Google Earth images from that time.

[Captain Kernow]

My friends in the rail industry tell me that new stations on the Newport - Cardiff line would reduce line capacity and therefore they are not supportive.

Sadly a fairly typical response - stick it on the 'too difficult' pile and leave it for the next incumbent, or the one after that, to try to sort out, and in the meantime give some spiel to the local 'stakeholders' that 'it's all too difficult, sorry'.

 

With all this new housing going up in some of these areas, I do wonder what level of liaison took place between local planning authorities and the railway industry. It's worked, sort of, at Cranbrook, on the Southern line east of Exeter and some other places, but where is the financial input from the developers, who are otherwise trousering nice profits, no doubt, towards the cost of rail infrastructure improvements to support the new stations? Never mind, as long as they've sold enough Executive Hutches, they'll be happy.

[Ian J.]

 

I'd rather there was a new station at Ringwood. Oh, and West Moors. And Wimborne. And Broadstone. And Sturminster Marshall. And Shepton Mallet. And Evercreech. And...

 

Wishlisting again.

 

[branchie]

Llangefni is about 4½ miles away from the nearest working railwayline. Does the announcement mean the Amlwch Branch is to be reopened as far as Llangefni?  (Llandudno - Llangefni?????) It is quite a thriving village these days with a modern Ford showroom and servicing centre and industrial complex.

Llangefni is more than a village tbf given that it's the island's administrative centre.

 

Given the scale of proposed developments on the island, I can see the logic but I remain to be convinced thatvthis is just more than political posturing.

[The Johnster]

Cycle path is well away from the road as shown down this page:

http://www.thecyclingmayor.com/severn-bridge-sportive/

 

I know, I walked across and back a couple of years ago, on a warm and flat calm summer evening with a spring tide, and a very pleasant stroll it was, too.  But even in conditions like that, the big trucks bounce the bridge around quite noticeably, and a bit of wind and winter road spray would be more than enough to put me off it as a daily commute in winter!  The foot and cycle paths are slightly lower than the road surface, and you are protected from the worst of the noise and spray by the crash barriers, but all the same...

[The Johnster]

There are indeed WAG elections in the offing, and if there's anything worse than a politician, it's a Welsh politician.  I really hope some of the more cynical opinions posted here about electioneering do not turn out to be justified, but as a bit of a cynic myself, I too will not really believe any of it until it appears as literally concrete evidence!