A Sunday service is returning to the Coryton line, serving Rhiwbina, Birchgrove, Whitchurch and other local stations - and Transport for Wales (TfW) is now looking into increasing the frequency of trains from two per hour to four per hour.
These were two of the key outcomes from a meeting between two of Rhiwbina's councillors, Adrian Robson and Jayne Cowan, and TfW yesterday (Friday 21 February).
The meeting also addressed cancellations, late-running, and missing out stops on the line.
"It was a useful meeting, and we were relieved that TfW are very aware of the problems on the Coryton line with trains being cancelled, running late or missing out stops," said Adrian.
"This is due to a short turnaround time of just four minutes at Penarth and the unreliability of the current rolling stock. We were pleased to hear in the short term this will improve with new trains in the spring, which are more reliable and have faster acceleration to make up lost time. We will be writing to the chief executive of TfW to ask if this can be escalated and prioritised.
"It was good to hear that a Sunday service will be introduced, but we were disappointed to learn that it won't be until December. We have asked for an update on the business plan for four trains per hour on the Coryton line, which needs a track loop installing. We are pleased during the recent electrification, TfW left space to install this in Rhiwbina."
Jayne added: "Once the reliability has improved, we are sure that more residents will use this train service to help build the business case for four trains per hour. Waiting 30 minutes for a 15 minute journey is not attractive to passengers.
"Welsh Government and TfW need to build the loop to increase the frequency. We will keep residents informed at all stages and want to thank them for their comments and suggestions."
🚆We reported last year that Rhiwbina and other stations on the Coryton Line will get no extra trains as a result of the new South Wales Metro system - a situation described by the expert behind the concept as a "woeful underprovision".
Professor Mark Barry said: "The current poor patronage on the City and Coryton lines is as a direct result of the poor service frequency. There really is little or no point operating a 2tph [trains per hour] rail service in Cardiff if one is serious about mode shift and operational/financial efficiency".
You can read that story here.
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