Skip to main content

Wales reveals scale of metro project

New rail and bus services are expected to reduce rural isolation
By Ben Spencer October 28, 2021 Read time: 2 mins
Wales programme will deliver up to 30% more services to improve connectivity (© 06photo | Dreamstime.com)

The Welsh Government has unveiled new maps illustrating the scale of a metro project, which will include 172km of electrification to improve journey times.

Wales is a country that is park of the UK. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west and the Bristol Channel to the south. 

Deputy minister for climate change Lee Waters unveiled the maps, saying: “Delivering the £1bn Welsh Metro project will be one of the most ambitious and complex programmes we’ve ever undertaken.”

The maps show the programme will deliver up to 30% more services to improve connectivity across Wales, such as new tram-trains offering fast turn-up-and-go services at 45 stations on Valleys Lines by 2024.

Other plans include new and improved rail and bus services and active travel routes to reduce rural isolation, new train stations to provide a viable public transport alternative to the road network and 100% renewable energy powering overhead wires.

“Improving our public transport and active travel network routes is the right and responsible thing to do for the environment – making low carbon transport options more attractive, affordable, and easier to use – enabling people to leave their car at home particularly in the more densely populated parts of Wales linking up with active travel routes to provide door-to-door journeys in an integrated, sustainable transport network,” Waters continues. 

Additionally, the Welsh government has pledged an additional £2 million to expand existing plans for South East and South West Wales metros, to include new bus and rail stations and services as well more active travel routes.

 

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Manchester seeks smart but not selective transport solutions
    January 25, 2018
    Smarter transport relies on better communications both with travellers and between transport providers. Andrew Williams reports. Inrix’s prediction that the cost of traffic congestion will rise by 63% to £21bn per year by 2030 clearly illustrates that, in addition to the ongoing inconvenience and inefficiency, ongoing gridlock is a significant drain on the economy. It is against this backdrop that a Cisco-led consortium has launched CitySpire, a smart transport programme that uses location-based services a
  • UK to ‘ban petrol and diesel cars by 2035’
    February 6, 2020
    A  ban on purchasing new petrol, diesel or hybrid cars and vans in the UK will be brought forward from 2040 to 2035.
  • EVs & smart cities: Tritium keeps things moving
    December 3, 2018
    Electric vehicles are widely expected to play a major role in the smarter, cleaner cities of the future. Paul Sernia explains why – and looks at the place of ultra-rapid chargers as part of a versatile public infrastructure Electric vehicles (EVs) are widely expected to play a major role in the smarter, cleaner cities of the future. With no dirty tailpipe, EVs can help improve the polluted air of inner cities. And when deployed as widely shared assets – through car clubs, ride-sharing services and taxi
  • Optibus and Enel X link on eBus solution 
    December 24, 2021
    Partners in software and EV infrastructure will focus on Latin America, North America & Europe