Call for Abergavenny to London rail service

10:30pm Tuesday 24th April 2012 in Gwent news Photograph of the Author By David Deans, Reporter

CALLS have been made for trains from Ebbw Vale to run hourly through Newport into England and for a daily train from Abergavenny to London.

Welsh transport consortium Sewta made the proposals as part of a package of ideas it would like to see included in rail franchise currently run by First Great Western.

The organisation was responding to a UK Government consultation on the future of the Great Western franchise which four companies are reported to be bidding to run from 2013.

Sewta, which co-ordinates transport strategy for the ten South East Wales councils including those in Gwent, said the proposed new services would benefit passengers and the Welsh economy.

The suggestions included:

* A daily service from Abergavenny to London and back: calling at Pontypool and New Inn, Cwmbran and Severn Tunnel Junction and arriving in London before 10am and departing before 8pm.

* Hourly services from Ebbw Vale to Bristol Parkway via Newport and Severn Tunnel Junction to provide new commuting opportunities to planned employment sites around Bristol Parkway.

* An hourly Worcester, Gloucester, Chepstow and Cardiff service.

Sewta called for existing services to be retained and for the franchise to commit to electrifying services from South Wales to Bristol and Bath.

The consortium also asked for an obligation for the franchisee to provide "sufficient" rail capacity on England to Cardiff services for major events at the Millennium Stadium and other venues.

Mark Youngman, chairman of Sewta Rail Group, said: "The new Greater Western Franchise is a once in a lifetime opportunity to enhance and develop mainline and regional services to benefit all people of South Wales."

The consultation is now closed. A decision on who is to run the franchise is expected in December.

EDITORIAL COMMENT: Will they listen now?

IT IS interesting to note suggestions from the South East Wales Transport Alliance that trains should run from Ebbw Vale to Newport hourly.

It wants to see the service as part of a package of recommendations to improve rail links in Gwent.

Quite how much of Sewta’s call will be heard by those responsible for our rail lines remains to be seen given that, for years, they have ignored calls from us, the public and local politicians to get an Ebbw Vale to Newport line up and running.

For nearly a decade we have called for the line to be introduced and for nearly a decade we have been fobbed off with lame excuses as to why it can’t happen.

It was nothing short of a scandal that the Ebbw Vale to Cardiff line was opened without so much as a thought about the impact it would have on Newport.

While Cardiff has reaped the rewards of getting people from the Valleys in to shop and take up employment there, Newport has missed out.

A decade on from when we first called for an Ebbw Vale to Newport line to open and we still don’t have any firm plan or date for when that might happen.

We wish Sewta well with its proposal.

Let’s hope it doesn’t fall on deaf ears.

Comments(7)

Bobevans says...
8:08am Wed 25 Apr 12

Running through trains from Ebbw Vale to London is just not sensible or viable. They clearly have not thought this through. For start it is a single track slow commuter line and not a High Speed Line. The number of pasengers would be very low as well. Just getting the Ebbw Vale line to Newport would be adequate. It wwould then be a simple platform change for London or Heathrow.

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PontyPeter says...
8:20am Wed 25 Apr 12

Bob. You haven't read the article, have you?
It doesn't suggest Ebbw Vale to London, it suggests Ebbw Vale to Bristol Parkway. It suggests Abergavenny to London, avoiding Newport.
They HAVE thought it through. You haven't.
The proposals are excellent and well considered. And a little optimistic as always in these cases.

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Owain Vaughan says...
9:27am Wed 25 Apr 12

He never does read the articles. He is like a badly-programmed robot that just posts blind negativity on any article.

Ebbw Vale to Bristol Parkway would remove one of the supposed stumbling blocks to running trains to Newport - i.e. blocking a through platform at Newport. Of course that could also easily be solved by building a bay platform to the north of the existing platform 4.

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pwharley says...
7:03pm Wed 25 Apr 12

There used to be direct trains from Abergavenny to London (Waterloo) several years ago, as part of a through service from Manchester.
There's no reason why they couldn't be re-instated. I'd also like to see the train call/reverse at Newport, as it used to.

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Bobevans says...
5:55pm Thu 26 Apr 12

There seem to be a lot of poster here that do not understand that slow commuter line trains will not be run over high speed lines. It would not work, it woyuld be very expensive and there would be little demand.

Who are you suggesting would pay for the masive subsidy and the cost of the extra tracks to London that would be required?

If people want to travel to London it is a simple change at Newport

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jbzoom says...
2:29pm Fri 27 Apr 12

Trains through the Severn Tunnel are speed restricted so the proposed Ebbw Vale - Newport - Bristol Parkway service would be feasible, especially when the valley lines are electrified.
A variety of rather slow dmu trains already run through the tunnel along with IC125 fast trains.

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jbzoom says...
2:31pm Fri 27 Apr 12

btw Owain, you're spot on!

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