Renewed calls to reopen Aberystwyth to Carmarthen rail link

Plaid Cymru Senedd Member, Cefin Campbell is renewing calls for the former rail line between Aberystwyth and Carmarthen to be reopened.

The call comes after the Welsh Government announced their £1bn Welsh Metro plan for future rail and bus investment – but without a firm commitment to the Mid Wales rail link.

Announcing the metro plans last week, Welsh Labour Climate Change minister Lee Waters outlined the Welsh Government’s strategy to meet their target of undertaking 45 per cent of journeys by public transport or active travel by 2040.

The Welsh Government’s current proposals for south west Wales include a Swansea Bay Metro, preliminary work on a Hydrogen bus pilot in Pembrokeshire and a new railway station at St Clears delivered by Transport for Wales by 2024.

In response, Plaid Cymru MS Mr Campbell has renewed calls for the Carmarthen line to be reopened.

He said: “Whilst I welcome announcements by Welsh Government to encourage greater use of public transport, including a new station at St Clears, greater emphasis must be placed on the reopening of west Wales railways to get Welsh climate ambitions on track”.

“Wales’ currently disjointed railway infrastructure remains unfit for purpose, and in vast swathes of west Wales, residents are left with no choice but to rely on pollutive private transport to undertake their daily commutes.

“With almost a fifth of Wales’ carbon emissions generated from transport, it’s vital that an integrated, accessible transport map is placed at the heart of the Welsh Government’s ambitions. I have no doubt that reopening the Aberystwyth-Carmarthen line would radically change the Welsh public transport map – securing green transport and unprecedented benefits for the west Wales economy.

“Plaid Cymru have also long called for a metro in south west Wales, however it’s vital that such developments include rail and light rail services to our valley communities and cannot just be centred on Swansea and other major towns. As such, serious consideration must be given to re-introducing passenger services to both the Amman and Gwendraeth Valleys.”

Campaign group Traws Link Cymru was formed in 2013 with aim of reinstating the railway lines between Aberystwyth and Carmarthen, and Afon Wen to Bangor, both of which were closed to passengers under the 1960s Beeching Cuts.

A feasibility study published by Welsh Government in 2018 confirmed that re-opening the Carmarthen to Aberystwyth part of the route was technically feasible, although set the price tag at £775m.

Traws Link Cymru published their own subsequent review which claimed that the cost of re-opening the Aberystwyth to Carmarthen railway was around £620 million, 20% less than the Welsh Government’s costings. The report also found that 97% of the original track bed was clear and that re-opening was a realistic prospect.