Did you know that south Wales is getting its own answer to London’s tube? The train network is expected to ’revolutionise’ travel in across the region when it lauches this year, with some trains running every five minutes, connecting core towns to Cardiff. It’s all very exciting, but why should the south of the country be the only place to enjoy London-style travel?
Well, north Wales could soon be getting a brand new public transport network, too. The idea for a north Wales metro was first mooted in 2016, but nothing much happened after that. Now, though, the Welsh government has officially revealed plans to bring a ‘integrated, high-frequency public transport network’ to north Wales to ‘unlock the economic potential’ of the region.
The plan, creatively titled Network North Wales, includes a metro-style service between Wrexham (of football-meets-Hollywood fame) and Liverpool. It’ll see the current Borderlands line renamed the Wrexham-Liverpool Line and Transport for Wales says that there’ll be four trains running each hour by 2035.
The government also wants to double the number of train services between Wrexham and Chester and bring forward the introduction of 50 percent more services across the north Wales mainline from December 2026 to next May.
At Wales’ first ever Public Transport Summit, Ken Skates, the cabinet secretary for transport and North Wales, promised ‘delivery at an unprecedented pace’. He added: ‘This is a long term vision, which begins now with real changes.’
Those changes include the roll out of tap on tap off pay systems, improved stations, increased services and an additional integrated bus service, all of which are expected over the next 12 months.
More than £13m has been invested for work to start immediately. The total cost of the project hasn’t been outlined yet, but one transport expert told the BBC that he reckons it’ll be around £2.1 billion.
The UK’s rail minister, Lord Hendy, said: ‘Through close collaboration between our two governments, we’re demonstrating how we can deliver a stronger, more connected rail network that truly meets passengers' needs and transforms everyday journeys across Wales.
‘Our collaborative approach will extend to these exciting proposals, which represent a significant opportunity to transform connectivity across the region and unlock new opportunities for communities.’
Time Out in Wales
In other recent news from Cymru, a Welsh gin has just made history, one of its national parks was one of the most beautiful places in the world, its largest theme park just closed after 40 years and in February it became the first British nation to ban greyhound racing. If you’re new to this underrated part of the country, check out out Time Out’s guides to it’s bucket-list-worthy things to do and best places to go.
ICYMI: This is the happiest place to live in Britain right now.
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