What is Cardiff Crossrail and when will it be built?

  • ITV Cymru Wales' Mike Griffiths reports.

New images have been released of the first phase of the proposed Cardiff Crossrail project.

The initial stage would see the construction of a tramway linking Cardiff Central railway station and Cardiff Bay.

Cardiff Council and Transport for Wales say the scheme will complement the ongoing South Wales Metro work to increase the frequency and speed of service on the existing Cardiff Bay line.

A six-week public consultation begins on Monday.

The project would require the road layout to be changed and provide more space for cycling

The scheme is eventually intended to run from the north west of the capital to Splott and Newport Road in the east, eventually joining up with the proposed Cardiff Parkway station at St Mellons.

These further phases, however, would require many hundreds of millions of pounds in extra funding.

Final approval of the privately funded Cardiff Parkway is in the hands of the Welsh Government, who called in the plans and held further hearings at the start of the year.

The 2020 concept for a completed Cardiff Crossrail. The Cardiff Bay section has since been revised, with a station being built at Butetown. Credit: Cardiff Council

Cardiff Council unveiled its initial concept for Cardiff Crossrail in January 2020.

This first phase is jointly funded by £50m secured by Cardiff Council from the UK Government's Levelling Up fund, and £50m from the Welsh Government.

  • Credit: The Urbanists

It will provide:

  • Two new platforms to the south of Cardiff Central railway station, where the current car park is located

  • A new tramway from Cardiff Central across Callaghan Square to join the existing Cardiff Bay line

  • A third platform at Cardiff Bay station

  • Improvements to public spaces along the route

Cardiff Crossrail is designed to use the same tram trains that will run on other parts of the South Wales Metro Credit: Transport for Wales/The Urbanists

Cardiff Council and Transport for Wales say the route could be up and running by early 2029, with work beginning once the project is officially signed off by the UK Government.

But the scheme will not currently extend to the proposed station at Pierhead Street to directly serve the new 15,000 capacity arena due to be built in Cardiff Bay.

A consultation over the route of the future eastern spur, running through Cardiff Bay to Splott and onwards to Newport Road, was held in 2023.

How does Cardiff Crossrail fit in with the South Wales Metro?

Considerable work is continuing to electrify what Transport for Wales calls the 'Core Valley Lines', the rail routes from Cardiff to Treherbert, Merthyr Tydfil, Aberdare and Rhymney, along with other branches to Coryton and via Radyr.

The promise is for faster and more frequent services from 2025.

New trains are already running on some routes, but the 'tram train' vehicles that will form the backbone of the service are not due to take passengers until next year.

These trains can run to a lighter standard than traditional heavy rail, meaning they can run on the kind of routes being proposed for Cardiff Crossrail.

One of the first Class 398 tram trains at the South Wales Metro depot in Taff's Well

With the Welsh Government having ambitious targets to encourage more people to use public transport, offering attractive alternatives to car use is key.

But the project has been hit by delays and rising costs, with Transport for Wales citing Covid and the cost of materials.

The project has already seen many miles of track electrified and doubled up, with new platforms along the routes.

Cardiff Crossrail is intended as an ambitious addition to the network, connecting parts of the capital and wider region not currently served by rail.

But with public finances already stretched, funding the future extensions to this route may be challenging.

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