It seems like all you hear about trains these days is strikes, delays, and cancelled high speed infrastructure projects. Today, though, you can breathe a sigh of relief, for the railway news is positive. Yep, positive!
Ebbw Vale in south Wales is getting a regular service to Newport, its nearest city. The route has been brought back to former glories by a £70 million loan from the Welsh government to the local Blaenau Gwent council.
As of today (February 1), there will be 30 trains running every day running between Newport and Ebbw Vale. The Ebbw Vale line did not run any passenger services at all between 1962 and 2008, and it has been slowly redeveloped since then.
The Chief Commercial Officer at Transport for Wales, Alexia Course, described the renovations as a ‘game changer’ for locals, and expressed excitement at how the route will ‘[open] up shorter journey times for anyone heading towards Manchester, Bristol or London.’
Continued improvements on the line, including better platforms and more frequent services, are planned for this spring, so keep an eye out for those if you’re near the Ebbw Valley area.
So rejoice! For now, all is well in the land of train travel. Enjoy this moment while it lasts.
Curious about the world of British railways?
Us too. We regularly report on the latest in UK train news, such as the fact that 90 stations will soon move to tap-and-go payments, or letting you know about this gorgeous new steam train holiday coming to Wales. We also keep you up to date with latest information about strikes.
Did you see that this British train journey is officially one of the most scenic in the world?
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