Transport in Wales

The only form of commuter rail system in Wales is the Valley Lines network serving Cardiff and the South Wales valleys, serving 20 stations in Cardiff and 61 stations in the surrounding area. Train frequency at the core of the network is up to every 5 minutes.[7]

Station buildings in Caerleon awaiting platform rebuilding and station re-opening on the Welsh Marches Line

Arriva Trains Wales at the potential re-opened station of Pontrilas, also on the Welsh Marches Line

The only surviving tram service within Wales is the Great Orme Tramway, a cable-hauled tramway in Llandudno which survives as a tourist attraction.

Cardiff, Swansea and Newport had extensive tram systems until the mid-20th century. Plans were mooted in the late 1990s for a modern tram system to serve Cardiff's urban areas, but these were shelved due to the costs of building and maintaining such a system.[8][9]

The world's first passenger tram service was the Mumbles Railway in Swansea, initially horse-drawn but later operated by steam and electric trams.[10]

The Llandudno and Colwyn Bay tramway, demolished in 1956, has a preservation society which has restored some original carriages.[11]

Wales has a large number of heritage railways. Some of these were former industrial narrow gauge railways, such as the Corris Railway. Others were formed from portions disused standard gauge railways, either kept as standard gauge (e.g. Barry Tourist Railway) or converted to narrow gauge (e.g. Brecon Mountain Railway). Some of the narrow gauge heritage railways are marketed as the Great Little Trains of Wales[12]

Notable heritage railways include:

• The Talyllyn Railway, the first railway in the world to be saved by a preservation society
• The Snowdon Mountain Railway, the only rack and pinion railway in the United Kingdom
• The Ffestiniog Railway, the oldest surviving railway company in the world
• The Welsh Highland Railway, linking the Ffestiniog Railway at Porthmadog to Caernarfon
• The Gwili Railway, the first standard gauge preserved railway to operate in Wales
• The Vale of Rheidol Railway, the last steam railway owned by British Rail until 1989

Wales has 83 miles (133 kilometres) of motorway, all of which are in the south. The major artery is the M4, which enters Wales via the Second Severn Crossing and terminates at Pont Abraham in Carmarthenshire. The M4 in South Wales has 27 junctions and is an important route between the main urban areas in the region. It links Llanelli, Swansea, Neath, Port Talbot, Bridgend, Cardiff and Newport directly to London and the rest of southern England, and indirectly to the Midlands via the A449, A40 and M50.

Following construction of the new bridge, the original Severn Bridge—which crosses the river further upstream at Chepstow—was re-numbered the M48 motorway. Tolls were once collected upon entering Wales using either of the two bridges; these were abolished on 19 December 2018.[13] The A48(M) is a small spur from the M4, from west Newport to east Cardiff.

The second major road is the A470 dual carriageway that connects Cardiff with the South Wales Valleys towns. It suffers from severe congestion especially during peak hours due to significant in-commuting to the Cardiff area.

The A465 Heads of the Valleys road, currently being upgraded to dual carriageway, provides a link between the M4 near Neath across the Heads of the Valleys to Abergavenny, Monmouth and England's West Midlands via the A40 and M50.

One of the main arteries for North Wales is the A494, running from Queensferry (near the English border) to Dolgellau. The road begins from the M56 motorway, connecting North Wales with Chester and Manchester Airport, both in England. The more important A55 runs from Holyhead (for ferry connections to Ireland), Conwy, Llandudno Junction and Rhyl to a junction with the M53 motorway near Chester.

One of the oldest roads, the A5 runs from the port of Holyhead south east to Bangor then down through Snowdonia to Betws-y-Coed, Corwen, Llangollen and over the English border south of Chirk. This route has served as the main passage for London-Dublin traffic for many years although its usage has been superseded by the A55 coast road. It is now more famed as a scenic route, and notorious for many Bank Holiday traffic jams.

Two routes serve as the main north-south links. The A483 begins near Swansea and takes a north-easterly route to Ammanford, Llandeilo, Llandovery, Llanwrtyd Wells, Builth Wells, Llandrindod Wells, Newtown, Welshpool, Oswestry and Wrexham, finally ending at Chester.

The A470 begins in Cardiff Bay and passes through Cardiff, north-to-north-westerly, on to Pontypridd, Abercynon, Merthyr Tydfil, Brecon, Builth Wells, Rhayader, Llangurig, Llanidloes, Llandinam, Commins Coch, Mallwyd, Trawsfynydd, Blaenau Ffestiniog, Dolwyddelan and Betws-y-Coed, terminating at Llandudno. It is a dual carriageway between Cardiff and Merthyr (where it meets the Heads of the Valleys Road, the A465), and the section of this route into Cardiff is heavily used.

Cardiff Bus in Cardiff

Optare Tempo in Aberystwyth, on TrawsCambria interurban service X40

Bus services are predominantly provided by the council owned Cardiff Bus and Newport Bus in the respective cities. Private sector operators in Wales include:

• Stagecoach South Wales, which provides services on a number of routes centred on Cardiff and the South Wales Valleys,[14] and a low-cost coach service from Cardiff to London as part of its Megabus brand
• First Cymru, which offers services centred on Bridgend, Neath Port Talbot, Swansea, Llanelli, Carmarthen, Haverfordwest and South Pembrokeshire,[15] also providing a key link from Bridgend/Swansea to Cardiff[16]
• Arriva Buses Wales, which provides services through North Wales
• NAT Group, which provides services between East and West Cardiff, and from Central Cardiff to Cardiff Airport, Pontypridd, Barry and Bridgend

In North Wales, National Express offers services from major towns to Liverpool, Manchester, Birmingham, London, Newcastle, Leeds and Bradford.

In South Wales, National Express provides direct services from major towns and cities to Bristol, Gatwick Airport, Heathrow Airport and London Victoria. Services also operate from Cardiff and Newport to Birmingham, Nottingham, Bradford, Sheffield and Hull. Megabus operates services from Cardiff to Bristol, London, Birmingham, Manchester, Leeds and Newcastle.

TrawsCymru is sponsored by the Welsh Government and offers intra-Wales routes, which are:

• Bangor to Aberystwyth via Porthmadog, Dolgellau and Machynlleth;
• Aberystwyth to Cardiff via Aberaeron, Lampeter Carmarthen and Swansea;
• Aberystwyth to Cardigan via Aberaeron;
• Wrexham to Barmouth via Llangollen, Bala and Dolgellau;
• Aberystwyth to Cardigan via New Quay; and
• Brecon to Newtown via Builth Wells and Llandrindod Wells.

A number of places in Wales suffer from air pollution.[17]

According to the National Survey for Wales 2017-18, almost 2% of the Welsh population cycled daily for active travel purposes. In total, 6% of the population actively travelled by bicycle at least once a week. Welsh Government data suggests that cycling in Wales is male-dominated; 12% of men said they cycle at least once per month for active travel purposes in 2017, compared to only 6% of women.[19]

In Wales, the Active Travel (Wales) Act was passed in 2013 which requires ministers and Welsh local authorities to 'map' active travel routes and networks across the country. It also requires Welsh Ministers to "report on active transport in Wales".[20]

In 2018, Cardiff City Council announced plans to develop a Cycle Superhighway network, similar to the network which exists in London. The project has since been rebranded, and five new Cycleways have been proposed in the city. The scheme is due to be completed over a fifteen-year period and is aimed at promoting active travel by bicycle in the city. The first five routes are due to open at the end of the first phase of the project in 2021.[21][22]

Despite Cardiff's Cycleways scheme, Flintshire is Wales' top local authority for active travel by bicycle; in the National Survey for Wales 2017-18, almost 18% of respondents in Flintshire said that they travel at least once per month by bicycle, compared to just over 16% of respondents in Cardiff. Fewer than 4% of the respondents in Carmarthenshire, Newport, Denbighshire and Blaenau Gwent said that they actively travel by bicycle at least once per month.[19]

Sustrans maintains several routes in Wales which form part of the National Cycle Network.[23]

Transport for Wales, Iarnród Éireann, as well as Irish Ferries and Stena Line promotes SailRail[24][25]

From South Wales using West Wales Lines to Fishguard Harbour and on Stena Line to Rosslare Europort service which links with the Iarnród Éireann trains to Dublin Connolly on the Dublin–Rosslare railway line. Whilst from North Wales the North Wales Coast Main Line connects Holyhead with a choice of ferries, either Stena Line or Irish Ferries to Dublin Port, for connecting buses to Dublin Connolly railway station.