October 10, 2018 - 1336 views
Colwyn Bay is set to welcome a brand new train operator to the rail network from next week as the existing operator loses its contract.
The new service from Keolisamey in conjunction with Transport for Wales will take over the Wales and Borders franchise from Arriva. It will see new trains operating across the North Wales coast and improvements in the regularity of services in and out of the area. Weekends and holiday times have often been a problem with reductions in services at the times when visitors and tourists most need to travel throughout the area. Over 95% of trains in Wales will be replaced.
The service which will be branded Transport for Wales will see an on-going investment in local jobs, cheaper off-peak fares and more subsidised travel costs into and out of North Wales. Other headline investment will include:
- £194m will be spent on station improvements, including the building of five new stations and the modernisation of all 247 already existing stations on the network;
- £800m will be spent replacing trains in Wales.
- By December 2023 KeolisAmey will be running an extra 285 services every weekday across Wales, with improvements on the Ebbw Vale line, North Wales Metro (Wrexham-Bidston), Cambrian and Heart of Wales lines;
- There will be an extra 294 services across Wales on Sundays, an increase of 61%, creating a true 7-day service for the first time;
- There will be investment in new technology to reduce disruption and enhance performance;
- a new website and app will be created in the first year;
- Investment will be made to improve on-board mobile phone connectivity.
- Six hundred new jobs will be created to deliver the contract, and 30 new apprenticeships will be created every year.
These improvements are part of a series of investments from a range of sources, including the Welsh Government, totaling £1.9bn that will be made over the 15-year contract period to bring about a transformation in rail travel for people and communities the length and breadth of Wales and its borders.
