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Petition Number: P-06-1371 Petition title: Re-open the railway stop in Nant-y-Derry Goytre Fawr to include us in the South Wales Metro Text of petition: We have sufficient population to include this in the plan. We currently have to use the A4042 to connect with Cardiff and England with a limited bus service. Demand among residents is growing. |
Aside from the Core Valleys Lines (CVL), which transferred into Welsh Government ownership in 2020, rail infrastructure – including stations - is not devolved and is the responsibility of the UK Government.
Although the Welsh Government has powers to invest in rail it doesn’t receive a Block Grant allocation.
Nant-y-Derry is a village in Monmouthshire. It’s located on the Welsh Marches Line. The village railway stationclosed in 1958. As it’s outside the CVL area, investment in the Marches Line is the responsibility of the UK Government.
The Welsh Government’s National Transport Delivery Plan 2022-2027 highlights that it is constructing new stations on the CVL, including at Crwys and Butetown. It continues to say “we are also considering the case for further new stations and interchange improvements at a number of locations across the CVL.”
On non-devolved stations, the plan draws attention to previous work to reopen stations on the non-devolved national rail network. This includes Bow St Station in Ceredigion, which opened in February 2021 with investment from both the Welsh and UK Governments following a long campaign by the local community.
The plan says the Welsh Government “will continue to work with the UK Government on future opportunities for additional stations across the network.”
Transport for Wales (TfW) is currently consulting on proposals for five new stations on the South Wales Mainline. These proposals emerged from the recommendations of the South East Wales Transport Commission (the ‘Burns Commission’), which made recommendations on alternatives to the M4 relief road.
Development work is being undertaken using UK Government funding announced following endorsement of the Burns Commission recommendations in the 2021 final report by the UK Government’s Union Connectivity Review. However, the TfW consultation materials make clear that once the proposals are developed, “this project is dependent on lots of other things also taking place. Most importantly, we need to receive funding to develop and deliver the final works”.
In the past, new Welsh stations have been part-funded through the UK Government’s New Stations Fund.
The issue of whether Westminster has underfunded Welsh rail infrastructure has been discussed for some time. The Welsh Government has called for devolution of responsibility with appropriate funding.
The UK Parliament’s Welsh Affairs Committee reported on rail infrastructure in Wales in July 2021. It found a strong case for additional investment in Welsh rail infrastructure. However, it didn’t see benefits in devolving rail infrastructure planning and funding to Wales. Rather it highlighted significant liabilities.
The letter to the Chair from the Deputy Minister for Climate Change on this petition highlights that the Marches Line is the responsibility of Westminster. The letter says, “The UK Government has consistently rejected our request for further rail devolution and have failed to adequately invest in Wales”.
It continues to say the UK Government “periodically issues a competitive bidding process” for new stations in England and Wales – a reference to the New Stations Fund - and highlights past Welsh Government support for projects in Wales. It says strong community engagement is important in this process.
The Welsh Government and TfW have worked with the UK Government and Network Rail to develop a rail infrastructure project pipeline, including new stations. The Deputy Minister says new projects can be added to this list.
While proposals for new stations have been discussed regularly in the Senedd, proposals for a new station at Nant-y-Derry do not seem to have been raised to date.
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