Merthyr Services Enhancement

[whole diary]

[swlines]

I've been informed that the additional services will come in at the May 2009 timetable change.

[SuperGlam]

Hi - I have been following this forum for ages and it is nice to see that people all over the FGW^▸ (First Great Western) area are interested in the Merthyr line upgrade.

Coming from and being a frequent visitor of Merthyr Vale, and as a regular user of the rail network for longer than I can remember (particularly the Cardiff-Portsmouth), I think that it is fantastic that this line is going back to 2tph for the first time - properly - since 1971. 

This valley has been neglected by the rail powers for far too long and is another step in the right direction - the more recent re-introduction of 2-hourly trains on a Sunday - chiefly at least one in the AM all year round was also a major plus. 

Not too many years ago ong ago Cardiff Railway was going to have just 1 train every 2 hours in the day would you believe!  About time we came into line (sic) with the other western valleys who have had a much, much better service even after the late-night trains were axed in 1991.

[grahame]

Hi - I have been following this forum for ages and it is nice to see that people all over the FGW^▸ (First Great Western) area are interested in the Merthyr line upgrade.

Hello, SuperGlam ... and welcome to the ranks of posters.  Although the board was set up (and is targetted) at lines / stations served by FGW, I think it's fair to say that most of us are interested in connecting lines as very many journeys involve multiple companies, and wider areas / comparisions too.  Recently, indeed, in my role of administaror I added a few words to the board heading to help encourage news of other South Wales services ... as well as other London - Bristol, Exter, Banbury services.

I recall catching the Sunday train on at Troed-y-rhiw when it was afternoon only and occasional to put it mildly - dreadful weather and I was in a bit of a state; conductor took pity on me and I clambered into the guard's van with my damaged, punctured byke and rode up to Merthyr before heading back down.  Good to see the services blossoming since then and showing an excellent example of what can be done.

This valley has been neglected by the rail powers for far too long and is another step in the right direction ...

It's very heartening indeed for many of us to see these steps - to show it can be done. We have different players - in my part of the country ...
* We have First rather than Arriva
* We have Wiltshire Council rather than the Welsh Assembly
* and we have far more DfT^» (Department for Transport - about) involvement that you have in Wales.
Actually, it's rather more than heartening - it's an example we can show them and say "why not follow this example?"

[welshman]

WAG^» (Welsh Assembly Government - about) and ATW^▸ (Arriva Trains Wales (former TOC^▸ (Train Operating Company))) are trying to produce a decent service, to be fair to them.

There is even a cunning plan - go here and click on
"Sewta Rail Strategy - Prioritised Investment Programme" so you can see what's in mind.

The problems are Pacers, Platform lengths (being fixed), too much single line, and chiefly the Cogan to Cardiff Queen Street bottleneck.  The CQS bottleneck is already running at capacity in terms of tph.  Unless Network Rail agree, and they haven't yet, to the extra platforms and trackwork which includes widening the bridge over Newport Road the expansion will grind to a halt sooner rather than later because the Valley Lines will be running at capacity.

What they ought to do is exercise some real ingenuity and connect Coryton back to the main line north to Pontypridd.  Then you could run circuits round Cardiff and share out the load using the City Line.

[Lee]

There is even a cunning plan - go here and click on
"Sewta Rail Strategy - Prioritised Investment Programme" so you can see what's in mind.

Ah yes, know it well.....

Does anyone have the figures / forecasts?

I have some info that is very close to what you require, from our friends at Jacobs (links below.)
http://www.sewta.gov.uk/PDF/Final_Report.pdf

http://www.sewta.gov.uk/PDF/SewtaPIP.pdf

Bit of a difference between the Sewta reports and the one contained in the link below.
http://www.dft.gov.uk/foi/responses/2006/september06/swindonwestburytrainsservice/greaterwesternoutlinebusines1103

[eightf48544]

Welshman has an interesting thought restoring the connection between the Cardiff Railway and the Taff Vale, which was built but never opened or used due to a dispute between the companies.

One of the problems the valley lines face is that although a lot of track and infrastructure has been taken out a lot was freight only i.e the four tracks from Radyr to Pontypridd some stations only had platforms on the main lines, because coal was king, passenger services were an afterthought. The original Abercyon station was an island platform for the Merthry trains with a single bi directional link from the Up platform to the Aberdare line which had a double line freight only connection bypassing the station.

So because there is an increase in passenger traffic it is not just a case of restoring old infrastrucure, new facilities will be required hence rebuilding Abercyon.   

[SuperGlam]

Just returned from a fortnight in south Wales the improvements to Merthyr Vale in particular is almost complete.

The old down platform is almost complete and has a huge ramp going down from the station square to it.  The new boards are about to be uncovered soon - including big billingual blue running-in boards.  There is not a "welcome to" board sadly but you can't have everything!  At the moment it does not look as if there will be a electronic board either - not sure if there is suppoed to be one and I don't think that we will have digital Doris either!  The new platform is not as long as the existing one and it looks like the old one may have a facelift by an identical ramp in the future.  The two shelters could then be opposite each other at the bridge end of the platform. 

The loop from just north of the old Black Lion has been in situ for a couple of months now - it goes all the way to just south of Troed-yr-hiw. At the Black Lion there will be a new linking bridge from the (historic) tramroad to the Taff Trail on a new tarmacced path.  Those of you who can remember the days of crossing at the bottom of the housing estate and walking over the main line and old sidings to get to what is now the Taff Trail are long gone!

At Abercynon South the new subway is taking shape and you cannot see much of the other (was disused) side of the old island platform through screening boards.  The new platform there is nearly completed with the new track to follow.  There is a new point at the top of the existing South plaform and one at the south end of the North one awaiting groundraising and connection.  The platform at North has been raised to make it seem temporary as clearly its days are numbered.   Although part of the old line was in situ to the new platform - covered by many years of rust etc that has now mostly been lifted.

Unfortunately Merthyr Vale, like most in the upper valleys, suffers badly from litter and vandalism so hopefully the CCTV^▸ (Closed Circuit Tele Vision) from the shop on the square will cover the new shelter(s) if they are not as badly located like the current one.  With all the time, money and effort spent on improving this valley's service hopefully it will go some way to stamping out the ills that the railway attracts. 

[John R]

For anyone interested, this month's Modern Railways (just published) has an article on the work being carried out. Hints that it may be "nice infrastructure, shame about the lack of trains to run the service though".

[Timmer]

Many thanks for your report on the Merthyr line improvement SuperGlam which I shall note when I read the article in MR^▸ (Midland Railway) that John is referring to.

[SuperGlam]

Good idea Welshman about restoring the Coryton - Pontypridd loop.  That would indeed show ingenuity!  Apparently only one train ever ran that line as a token gesture a great many years ago.  Anyway, a school is now in the way of where it came out of the woods south of Treforest!

[welshman]

See my post in this thread

[SuperGlam]

The almost-completed new platform 2 at M Vale opened last Monday.  The existing platform is closed for modernisation - not sure if there will be a new shelter opposite the one on the new platform.  It would make sense as I said in an earlier post.

The local Merthyr Express paper gave this piece of good news - for the first service from that platform for 37 years... nothing.

[Chris from Nailsea]

Thanks, SuperGlam!

Interesting that wikipedia is also 'a bit out of date' on this 'good news' development? see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merthyr_Vale_railway_station .

The litter problem certainly seems to have been there in September 2007, though: is it better now?

 

[SuperGlam]

That optical illusion of 2 platforms in use seems like a clean day at the then-eyesore that is Merthyr Vale station.  It is not quite the worst in the valleys for litter/grafitti but it is up there with the likes of Porth in my opinion - sadly.

What the picture does not show well is the rubbish towards the camera on the scree-like slops on the then-disued platform.  It took the workers ages to clear it all - it looked like fly-tipping but it is not - all by hand I am afraid.  With the old trees etc being taken away litter will stand out a mile - I hope we are not going to go back to the bad old days.  Mountain Ash is an example of a modernised 2-platform station that has/had quite a lot of litter - or at least the last time I travelled up those valleys they did.

The new platform does look much cleaner but unless a bin is put there (the last one on the other platform got used as a brazier) it will always sadly attract litter. I don't blame the adopters (an ATW^▸ (Arriva Trains Wales (former TOC^▸ (Train Operating Company))) initiative) for not clearing stuff like smashed Lambrini bottles, fag ends and other things you would not put your hands near - on both platforms. 

As for graffiti - the words on the bridge have been there for at least 25 years!  I hope the workers remove that also before the official re-opening (if there is one).

[SuperGlam]

New service starts tomorrow -we finally catch up with the Rhonddda and Cynon Valleys.