Cardiff Central railway station
Cardiff Central | |
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Welsh: Caerdydd Canolog | |
Frontage of Cardiff Central station (northern entrance) | |
Location | |
Place | Cardiff |
Local authority | City and County of Cardiff |
Coordinates | 51°28′32″N 3°10′41″W / 51.4755°N 3.1780°WCoordinates: 51°28′32″N 3°10′41″W / 51.4755°N 3.1780°W |
Grid reference | ST181758 |
Operations | |
Station code | CDF |
Managed by | Transport for Wales |
Owned by | Network Rail |
Number of platforms | 8 |
DfT category | A |
Live arrivals/departures, station information and onward connections from National Rail Enquiries | |
Annual rail passenger usage* | |
2012/13 |
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– Interchange |
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2013/14 |
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– Interchange |
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2014/15 |
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– Interchange |
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2015/16 |
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– Interchange |
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2016/17 |
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– Interchange |
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History | |
19 June 1850 | Opened |
1932 | Rebuilt |
National Rail – UK railway stations | |
* Annual estimated passenger usage based on sales of tickets in stated financial year(s) which end or originate at Cardiff Central from Office of Rail and Road statistics. Methodology may vary year on year. | |
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Cardiff Central railway station (Welsh: Caerdydd Canolog, formerly ‘Cardiff General’) is a major station on the South Wales Main Line in Cardiff, the capital of Wales, and one of two hubs of the city's urban rail network.
Cardiff Central is in Central Square in the city centre. It is a Grade II listed building managed by Transport for Wales. It is the largest and busiest station in Wales and one of the major stations on the British railway network.
Cardiff Central is one of 20 train stations in the city and one of two in the centre, the other being Cardiff Queen Street, both of which are hubs for the Valleys & Cardiff Local Routes. It is an interchange for services between South and West Wales, and other major British cities. Great Western Railway runs intercity services to London Paddington via Bristol and to Swansea, and regional services to Bath, Taunton and Portsmouth via Southampton; Transport for Wales operates services to many destinations in Wales; and CrossCountry operates trains to Gloucester, Birmingham, Nottingham and Manchester.
History
In the early 1840s the South Wales Railway was trying to find a suitable site for a railway station, but the area that is now Cardiff Central railway station was prone to flooding. It was Isambard Kingdom Brunel's solution to divert the River Taff to the west, creating a larger and safer site for the station.[1] The initial part of the South Wales Railway between Chepstow and Swansea through Cardiff was opened on 18 June 1850, with all trains operated by the Great Western Railway (GWR) under a lease agreement.[2]
Between 1932 and 1934, the GWR replaced the original station building (also designed by their architects department under their chief architect Percy Emerson Culverhouse) with an impressive new Art Deco building faced in Portland stone, enclosing including a booking hall with noted Art Deco light fittings, all topped by a clock cupola.[3] The Great Western Railway has its full name carved onto the façade (larger than the name of the station). As a result of representations by the GWR, a nearby working-class district, Temperance Town, was cleared during the late 1930s in order to improve the outlook of the rebuilt station.[4]
The formerly separate Cardiff Riverside station of 1893 served the Cardiff Riverside branch railway. This was integrated into the main station in 1940 but its platforms ceased to be used for passenger traffic in the 1960s.[5]
Initially named Cardiff, the station was renamed Cardiff General in July 1924 and Cardiff Central in May 1973.[6][7]
The station, its entrances and platforms, are Grade II listed.[8]
Station layout
There are two entrances to the station. The northern main entrance leads to the main concourse and is on Central Square. Three main city centre landmarks are visible from here: the Millennium Stadium, Stadium House and Southgate House.[9]
The southern entrance is at the rear of the station on Tresillian Way, accessed from Penarth Road, where the station car park is found.
The railway lines are above the station concourses. Two subways, one each at the eastern and western side of the station, run parallel under the tracks linking the two main entrances, from which the platforms are accessed by stairs and lifts, with the exception of Platform 0 which is accessed from the main concourse near Marks and Spencer. A valid ticket is required to pass through a barrier and gain access to the platforms.
Facilities
The majority of facilities are in the main concourse, including ticket desks and machines, cash machines, an information desk, departure and arrival screens, public telephones, a newsagent, and food shops. The station has the only First Class waiting room in Wales.[10][11] Outside, an pay-and-display car park provides 248 spaces.[12]
British Transport Police maintains a presence at Cardiff Central.[13]
Platforms
Cardiff Central has eight platforms, numbered 0, 1, 2, 3a/b, 4a/b, 6, 7 and 8. There is no longer, despite signage, a Platform 5; this was a west-facing bay platform situated between Platforms 3 and 4.[15]
Platforms 3 and 4 are divided into 'A' and 'B' sections and are capable of holding two local trains or a nine car Class 800 train. Other platforms can be used by more than one train, but are not sectioned.
Platform 6 is used by Valley Lines trains to the north and east of Cardiff and to the Valleys. Every train from Platform 6 calls at Cardiff Queen Street. Valley Line trains from Cardiff Queen Street call at Platform 7 and 8 and continue to north-west Cardiff and the Vale of Glamorgan.
The normal pattern of usage is:
- Platform 0
- Transport for Wales:
- Ebbw Vale Town via Rogerstone and Risca and Pontymister, usually Class 150 'Sprinter' units
- Great Western Railway:
- Taunton via Bristol Temple Meads and Weston-super-Mare, usually Class 150 'Sprinter' units and Class 158 'Express Sprinter' units.
- CrossCountry:
- Manchester Piccadilly via Bristol Temple Meads and Birmingham New Street, usually Class 221 'SuperVoyager' units
- Nottingham via Birmingham New Street and Derby, usually Class 170 'Turbostar' units
- Transport for Wales:
- Platform 1
- Transport for Wales:
- Cheltenham Spa via Gloucester, usually Class 158 or Class 150 'Sprinter' units from Maesteg.
- Terminating trains from Swansea, Carmarthen and Milford Haven
- Great Western Railway:
- London Paddington via Bristol Parkway, Swindon and Reading, usually Class 800s from Swansea
- Transport for Wales:
- Platform 2
- Transport for Wales:
- Cheltenham Spa via Gloucester, usually Class 158 or Class 150 'Sprinter' units from Maesteg One service starts from Fishguard Harbour
- Holyhead via Newport, Hereford, Shrewsbury, Wrexham General, Chester, Llandudno Junction and Bangor, usually Class 175 'Coradia' units
- Manchester Piccadilly via Newport, Hereford, Shrewsbury and Crewe, usually Class 175 'Coradia' units from Carmarthen or Milford Haven, with one from Fishguard Harbour
- Great Western Railway:
- Transport for Wales:
- Platforms 3a/3b
- Transport for Wales:
- Milford Haven/Carmarthen/Tenby/Llanelli via Bridgend and Swansea, usually Coradia units from Manchester Piccadilly
- Great Western Railway:
- Swansea/Carmarthen/Pembroke Dock (summer Saturdays only) via Bridgend, Port Talbot Parkway and Neath, usually Class 800s from London Paddington
- CrossCountry
- Terminating trains from Nottingham, Birmingham New Street and Manchester Piccadilly.
- Transport for Wales:
- Platform 4a/4b
- Transport for Wales:
- Fishguard Harbour (two via Swansea and Carmarthen, plus one fast service avoiding both).
- Swansea via Bridgend, Port Talbot Parkway and Neath
- Maesteg via Pontyclun and Bridgend, usually Class 158 or Class 150 'Sprinter' units from Cheltenham Spa.
- Great Western Railway
- Terminating trains from London Paddington, Taunton, Westbury and Portsmouth Harbour
- Transport for Wales:
- Platform 6
- Transport for Wales:
- Coryton via Cardiff Queen Street, Heath Low Level, Ty Glas, Birchgrove, Rhiwbina and Whitchurch
- Bargoed via Cardiff Queen Street, Caerphilly and Ystrad Mynach
- Rhymney via Cardiff Queen Street, Ystrad Mynach, Bargoed and Tir-Phil
- Merthyr Tydfil via Cardiff Queen Street, Radyr, Pontypridd, Abercynon and Quakers Yard
- Aberdare via Cardiff Queen Street, Radyr, Pontypridd, Abercynon and Mountain Ash
- Treherbert via Cardiff Queen Street, Radyr, Pontypridd, Tonypandy, Llwynypia, Ystrad Rhondda, Ton Pentre, Treorchy and Ynyswen
- Terminating trains from Bridgend via the Vale of Glamorgan Line.
- Transport for Wales:
- Platform 7
- Transport for Wales:
- Radyr via Ninian Park, Waun-Gron Park, Fairwater and Danescourt
- Penarth via Grangetown and Dingle Road
- Barry Island via Grangetown, Dinas Powys and Barry
- Bridgend via Grangetown, Dinas Powys, Barry, Rhoose Cardiff International Airport and Llantwit Major
- Terminating trains from Treherbert
- Transport for Wales:
- Platform 8
Regeneration
In 2011 it was announced that Cardiff Central would be enhanced with a new platform ('Platform 8') and a new two-storey southern entrance and booking hall. This was part of a £200m regeneration scheme to boost train capacity in Cardiff and the surrounding areas. Work is expected to start from June 2014. The Assembly Government has committed £7m for the overall enhancements programme[16]
The old Grade II listed Water Tower (next to Platform 0 and the River Taff) was repainted in 2012 in the original brown and beige colours of the Great Western railway.[17]
Central Square
Central Square is the large public space directly outside the main entrance to the station. Formerly the location of Cardiff Central bus station, redevelopment of the square started in Autumn 2015. New buildings on Central Square are to house the new headquarters and studios of BBC Wales, together with office and retail space.
Gallery
- Cardiff General in May 1970
- A mosaic outside the station
- The Concourse looking west
- The Subway
- The view from the eastern end of Platform 3 and 4
Routes
Rail and sea corridor to Ireland
Some of Transport for Wales' boat trains to and from Fishguard Harbour commence at Cardiff Central. These connect with the Stena Line ferry to Rosslare Harbour in Ireland with a daily morning and evening service in both directions. This route has been in existence since 1906.
Incidents
To the east of the platforms, the Valley Lines tracks rise up and cross over the South Wales Main Line using a bridge. Rail services were severely disrupted in August 2012 when the retaining wall between the tracks partially collapsed, spilling five tonnes of earth. The South Wales Main Line was swiftly reopened, but all services between Cardiff Central and Cardiff Queen Street were cancelled, with a replacement bus service operating. It was expected that repairs could take two weeks.[18][19] There were worries that the bronze medal match in the 2012 Summer Olympics men's football competition, held at the nearby Cardiff Millennium Stadium could be disrupted, but most fans were due to arrive by the main line rather than the Valley Lines.[20] There had been severe congestion at the station earlier in the month due to another Olympic match.[21]
In December 2016, a serious accident was narrowly averted by the alertness of a driver. During the Cardiff Area Resignalling Scheme, a set of points had been left in an unsafe condition, and undetectable by the signalling system. The Rail Accident Investigation Branch report into the incident revealed that lessons learnt following the Clapham Junction rail crash in December 1988 appeared to have been forgotten. Excessive working hours and a lack of detailed planning were cited as contributory factors.[22]
See also
Notes
- ↑ "Cardiff Arms Park, A short History - The Creation of the Arms Park". Cardiff Council. Archived from the original on 15 October 2012. Retrieved 22 May 2008.
- ↑ MacDermot, E.T. (1927). History of the Great Western Railway, volume I 1833–1863. London: Great Western Railway.
- ↑ "Cardiff General Railway Station, Cardiff". Coflein. Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Wales. Retrieved 1 April 2013.
- ↑ Fisk, Stephen (June 2009). "Abandoned Communities - Temperance Town". Retrieved 3 November 2009.
- ↑ Barrie, D.S.M. (1980). South Wales. Newton Abbot: David & Charles. ISBN 0-7153-7970-4.
- ↑ Butt, R.J.V. (1995). The Directory of Railway Stations. Patrick Stephens Ltd. p. 53.
- ↑ "Cardiff Timeline". Archived from the original on 29 September 2007.
- ↑ "Cardiff Central Station, Booking Hall, Passenger Subway, Platforms 1-4, 6 & 7 and Platform Buildings". British Listed Buildings. Retrieved 1 April 2013.
- ↑ "Cardiff Central Station view". Google Maps.
- ↑ "First Class". First Great Western.
- ↑ "First Class Lounges at Major Train Stations". Virgin Trains.
- ↑ "Cardiff Central (CDF)". National Rail.
- ↑ "British Transport Police, Wales & Western Area". Archived from the original on 25 December 2013.
- ↑ "Route Plans 2008 - Route 15, South Wales Valleys" (PDF). Network Rail. p. 10.
- ↑ Potential reinstatement of this platform is mentioned on page 10 of Network Rail's route plan for the Valley Lines[14]
- ↑ Law, Peter (9 February 2011). "Cardiff rail stations set for revamp". South Wales Echo.
- ↑ "Cardiff Central's landmark water tower renovation starts - without a daffodil in sight". Wales Online. 19 June 2012. Retrieved 5 January 2014.
- ↑ "Cardiff rail disruption 'to continue' after wall breaks". BBC News. BBC. 11 August 2012. Retrieved 11 August 2012.
- ↑ "Cardiff rail services disruption after wall collapse". BBC News. BBC. 10 August 2012. Retrieved 11 August 2012.
- ↑ "Cardiff wall collapse causes rail delays". BBC News. BBC. 10 August 2012. Retrieved 11 August 2012.
- ↑ "Olympic football: Team GB Cardiff quarter-final attracts thousands". BBC News. BBC. 5 August 2012. Retrieved 11 August 2012.
- ↑ "Serious irregularity at Cardiff East Junction 29 December 2016" (PDF). Rail Accident Investigation Branch. Retrieved 30 October 2017.
Further reading
- "Cardiff plan". Rail Enthusiast. EMAP National Publications. October 1982. p. 52. ISSN 0262-561X. OCLC 49957965.