Plans for an hourly service on the Cambrian have been delayed again more than a decade after initial plans were announced - and services on two other Powys routes have been reduced.

In the Transport for Wales Future Timetable Review, which sets out future plans for train services across Wales they have estimated that the hourly service will be introduced in 2026 - and will only run for a few months of the year.

In the review it has said there will be a new “hourly service between Aberystwyth and Shrewsbury to run from May to September from May 2026”.

And the Heart of Wales line is set to see its services reduced, while services will also be pulled between Machynlleth and Pwllheli.

Plans for an hourly service on the Cambrian Line were announced in 2014 but if the current plans proceed would be scheduled to arrive 12 years later.

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Transport for Wales also announced changes on the Heart of Wales line.

It plans on “reducing Heart of Wales Line services from five through services to four per day from December 2024 and removal of the two late evening services to Llandovery and Llandrindod.”

They added that “bus options are currently being explored”.

It also confirmed the “removal of four services between Machynlleth and Pwllheli (two in each direction)” and that “two further services will be retimed and will run between March and December.”

In the review Transport for Wales said: “Our future planning is based on a number of evidence-based factors including demand and growth trends, as well as social and economic factors. Our long-term strategy was developed by giving careful consideration to all of these.

“In the wake of the Covid 19 pandemic, the way people use public transport for work, education and leisure has changed significantly. We’ve changed too, becoming a public railway in the truest sense of the word.

“Nearly every service we run requires some form of public subsidy at a time where budgets are increasingly stretched.


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"Every penny we make above and beyond our operating costs, goes back into reducing the subsidy we receive. As a responsible operator it is imperative that we balance the needs for a regular, robust and reliable service within our budgets and against our targets to deliver more sustainable transport.”

It added: “We intend to deliver these timetables over the next few years, however, it is still vitally important that we take your feedback on board.

“Whilst we’re unable to make fundamental changes to the approach we’ve outlined, some timing and service adjustments could still be made.”

You can have your say on the plans by filling out the feedback form on the Transport for Wales website.