Rail transport in Cardiff has developed to provide connections to many other major cities in the United Kingdom, and to provide an urban rail network for the city and its commuter towns in southeast Wales. Today, there are three train operating companies in Cardiff: Great Western Railway, CrossCountry and Transport for Wales.
All 20 railway stations in Cardiff are owned by Network Rail and managed by Transport for Wales which also operates all train services at these stations, with the exception of Cardiff Central which is also served by CrossCountry and Great Western Railway. The stations form part of Cardiff's commuter rail network, colloquially known as Valley Lines
[1] and are the main hubs of the city and are the two busiest stations in Wales.
Cardiff Central is one of the United Kingdom's major railway stations, providing connections to Newport, Bristol, Bath, Reading, London, Southampton, Portsmouth, Gloucester, Cheltenham, Birmingham and Nottingham. It is located in the south of the Cardiff city centre
Cardiff Queen Street is the hub of the Valley Lines network, with all lines running through the station. It is located in Cardiff's eastern city centre.
| Station | Area | Station Code | Platforms | 13/14 Entry/Exit (millions) | Year opened | Lines | Image | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Birchgrove Llwynbedw | Birchgrove | BCG | 1 | 0.034 | 1929 | Coryton Line | ||
| Cardiff Bay Bae Caerdydd | Butetown Cardiff Bay | CDB | 1 | 1.019 | 1841[2] | Butetown Branch Line | ||
| Cardiff Central Caerdydd Canolog | Cardiff city centre | CDF | 8 | 11.74 | 1850 | Cardiff City Line Coryton Line, Ebbw Valley Railway Maesteg Line, Merthyr Line Rhondda Line Rhymney Line South Wales Main Line Vale of Glamorgan Line | ||
| Cardiff Queen Street Caerdydd Heol Y Frenhines | Cardiff city centre Adamsdown | CDQ | 5 | 2.463 | 1840 | Butetown Line Coryton Line Merthyr Line Rhondda Line Rhymney Line | ||
| Cathays Cathays | Cathays Cardiff University | CYS | 2 | 0.807 | 1983 | Merthyr Line Rhondda Line | ||
| Coryton Coryton | Coryton Pantmawr Whitchurch | COY | 1 | 0.266 | 1911 | Coryton Line | ||
| Danescourt Danescourt | Danescourt Llandaff North | DCT | 2 | 0.086 | 1987 | City Line | ||
| Fairwater Tyllgoed | Fairwater | FRW | 2 | 0.051 | 1987 | City Line | ||
| Grangetown Grangetown | Grangetown Leckwith | GTN | 2 | 0.180 | 1882 | Vale of Glamorgan Line | ||
| Heath High Level Lefel Uchaf y Mynydd Bychan | Heath Cyncoed | HHL | 2 | 0.311 | 1915 | Rhymney Line | ||
| Heath Low Level Lefel Isel y Mynydd Bychan | Heath Cyncoed | HLL | 1 | 0.054 | 1911 | Coryton Line | ||
| Lisvane and Thornhill Llys-faen | Lisvane Thornhill | LVT | 2 | 0.176 | 1871 | Rhymney Line | ||
| Llandaf Llandaf | Llandaff North Gabalfa Whitchurch | LLN | 2 | 0.441 | 1840 | Merthyr Line Rhondda Line | ||
| Llanishen Llanishen | Llanishen | LLS | 2 | 0.221 | 1871 | Rhymney Line | ||
| Ninian Park Parc Ninian | Leckwith Ninian Park Canton | NNP | 2 | 0.100 | 1987 | City Line | ||
| Radyr Radyr | Radyr Morganstown | RDR | 3 | 0.469 | 1863 | Merthyr Line Rhondda Line City Line | ||
| Rhiwbina Rhiwbina | Rhiwbina | RHI | 1 | 0.046 | 1911 | Coryton Line | ||
| Ty Glas Tŷ Glas | Llanishen Heath | TGS | 1 | 0.131 | 1987 | Coryton Line | ||
| Waun-Gron Park Parc Waun-Gron | Fairwater Canton | WNG | 2 | 0.055 | 1987 | City Line | ||
| Whitchurch Yr Eglwys Newydd | Whitchurch | WHT | 1 | 0.011 | 1911 | Coryton Line |
These are the main rail lines that serve Cardiff. Most of the lines are Cardiff commuter lines that form the city's urban rail network.
See main article: South Wales Main Line. The South Wales Main Line is a branch of the Great Western Main Line from . It diverges from the main line near Swindon, first passing through Bristol Parkway and continuing through the Severn Tunnel to Cardiff Central via Newport. The line continues from the city towards West Wales. The line between London and Cardiff has been electrified.[3]
The Butetown Line is a short line running from Cardiff Queen Street to Cardiff Bay. Rail services call only at those stations with a frequency of every 12 minutes.
The Cardiff City Line is entirely within Cardiff running to its western suburbs. The line terminates at Radyr, after calling at Ninian Park,, Fairwater and Danescourt. Rail services run to Cardiff Central and Queen Street every 30 minutes, and usually continue on the Coryton Line.
The Coryton Line is entirely within Cardiff running to its northern suburbs. The line terminates at Coryton, after calling at stations in Heath, Ty Glas, Birchgrove, Rhiwbina and Whitchurch. Rail services run to Cardiff Central and Queen Street every 30 minutes, and usually continue on the Radyr Line.
The Ebbw Valley Railway was re-opened to passenger rail services in February 2008. The line provides an hourly service between Cardiff Central and Ebbw Vale Town. The line follows the South Wales Main Line eastbound out of Cardiff before diverging north and calling at Rogerstone, Risca and Pontymister, Crosskeys, Newbridge, Llanhilleth and Ebbw Vale Parkway.
The Maesteg Line runs from Cardiff to Maesteg in Bridgend County Borough. The line follows the South Wales Main Line through the Vale of Glamorgan until Bridgend, calling at minor stations which are not served by high speed services. The line then diverges northwards through Sarn and Tondu. Services run every hour to and from Cardiff, often extending to Cheltenham Spa.
The Merthyr Line runs northward out of Cardiff, calling at stations in the suburbs of Cathays, Llandaff and Radyr, where it connects with the City Line. It continues into Rhondda Cynon Taff, through Taffs Well, Treforest and Pontypridd. Frequencies on this stretch of the line are usually every 10 minutes.
After calling at Abercynon, the line splits into two branches; one to Merthyr Tydfil via Merthyr Vale and another to Aberdare via Mountain Ash. Frequencies are every 30 minutes on both branches and often link up with Vale of Glamorgan Line services to Barry Island or Bridgend via .
The Rhondda Line is a line that runs north from Cardiff through the Rhondda Valley to Treherbert. The line is shared with the Merthyr Line until Pontypridd. From there, the line diverges through Porth, Tonypandy and Treorchy amongst others.
Services run every 30 minutes and often continue through Cardiff onto the Vale of Glamorgan Line to Penarth or Barry Island.
The Rhymney Line is another line that runs northwards from Cardiff and calls at stations in the city suburbs of Heath, Llanishen and Lisvane before continuing to Caerphilly and places such as Ystrad Mynach, Hengoed and Bargoed.
Services on this stretch of line run every 15 minutes. Every hour, trains continue on the rest of the line to Rhymney. Trains often continue through Cardiff onto the Vale of Glamorgan Line to Penarth.
The Vale of Glamorgan Line is a line that runs from Cardiff through the largely rural county of the Vale of Glamorgan to Bridgend. The line comprises three branches. Trains call at Grangetown in Cardiff before continuing on the main line to stations in Dinas Powys and Barry, or diverging onto a branch serving Penarth. After Barry, services can either continue again to, Llantwit Major and or diverge to Barry Island.
Frequencies to Penarth or to Barry Island are every 15 minutes, and to Bridgend via Cardiff Airport are every hour. Train services often continue after Cardiff Queen Street on the Merthyr, Rhondda or Rhymney Lines.
There are direct services from Cardiff Central to the following destinations, with the average scheduled journey time:
| Destination | Time from Central | Operator | |
| Bath Spa | 65 mins | Great Western Railway | |
| Birmingham New Street | 120 mins | CrossCountry | |
| Bristol Parkway | 41 mins | Great Western Railway | |
| Bristol Temple Meads | 48 mins | Great Western Railway | |
| Derby | 174 mins | CrossCountry | |
| Gloucester | 59 mins | CrossCountry Transport for Wales | |
| Holyhead | 301 mins | Transport for Wales | |
| London Paddington | 100-110 mins | Great Western Railway | |
| Manchester Piccadilly | 205 mins | Transport for Wales | |
| Milford Haven | 160 mins | Transport for Wales | |
| Nottingham | 200 mins | CrossCountry | |
| Portsmouth Harbour | 211 mins | Great Western Railway | |
| Shrewsbury | 121 mins | Transport for Wales | |
| Southampton Central | 156 mins | Great Western Railway | |
| Taunton | 122 mins | Great Western Railway | |
| Wrexham General | 161 mins | Transport for Wales |
| Destination | Time from Central | Operator | |
| Aberdare | 63 mins | Transport for Wales | |
| Rhymney | 60 mins | Transport for Wales | |
| Barry | 24 mins | Transport for Wales | |
| Bridgend | 22-59 mins | Great Western Railway Transport for Wales | |
| Coryton | 19 mins | Transport for Wales | |
| Ebbw Vale | 56 mins | Transport for Wales | |
| Maesteg | 54 mins | Transport for Wales | |
| Merthyr Tydfil | 62 mins | Transport for Wales | |
| Newport | 13-15 mins | CrossCountry Great Western Railway Transport for Wales | |
| Penarth | 16 mins | Transport for Wales | |
| Pontypridd | 30 mins | Transport for Wales | |
| Radyr | 26 mins | Transport for Wales | |
| Tredegar | 84 mins | Transport for Wales | |
| Treherbert | 66 mins | Transport for Wales |
| Operator | Years | Image | Stock operated | Route(s) | |
| CrossCountry | 2007–2019 | Class 170 Turbostar | Cardiff Central – Nottingham via Gloucester and Birmingham | ||
| Great Western Railway | 1996-2019 | Class 800 IET Class 158 Express Sprinter | London – Paddington via South Wales Main Line, Bristol Parkway and Reading Cardiff Central – Portsmouth Harbour via Bristol Temple Meads, Bath, Salisbury and Southampton Cardiff Central – Taunton via Bristol Temple Meads and Weston-Super-Mare | ||
| Transport for Wales | 2018-2033 | Class 67 and Mark 3 Class 175 Coradia Class 158 Express Sprinter Class 153 Super Sprinter Class 150 Sprinter | Cardiff Central – Holyhead via Shrewewsbury, Wrexham & Chester West Wales – Manchester Piccadilly via Shrewewsbury & Crewe Maesteg – Cheltenham Spa via Gloucester South Wales Main Line to Swansea, Carmarthen, Tenby, Pembroke Dock, Milford Haven Valley Lines Cardiff Bay Line |
| Operator | Years | Image | |
| Arriva Trains Wales | 2003–2018 | ||
| Central Trains | 1997–2007 | ||
| Valley Lines | 1995–2001 |
| Operator | Years | Image | |
| Virgin CrossCountry | 1997–2007 | ||
| Wales & Borders | 2001–2003 | ||
| Wales & West | 1997–2001 | ||
| Wessex Trains | 2001–2006 |
The Cardiff Waterbus towards Cardiff Bay stops at Taff Mead Embankment, near Central Station.
Taxi ranks are located outside Central Station, as is cycle parking which is also available at many other city stations.
Cardiff Airport connects with the Cardiff rail network at station, from which free shuttle buses run to the departures terminal.
The South Wales Metro System is a proposed major overhaul of the transport systems in South East Wales, including integration of heavy rail and development of light rail and bus-based public transport services around the hub of Cardiff Central.
The disused railway station in the St. Fagans area, in the west of the city, could be reopened to bolster transport links for a major Cardiff tourist attraction, under a proposal in March 2010 by former First Minister Rhodri Morgan AM and Cardiff West MP Kevin Brennan, follow predictions that visitor numbers to the National History Museum could top one million a year by 2017. By 2012, further submissions will be made to try to secure £8.7m of funding towards the project.[4]
Network Rail is currently proposing adding an extra two platforms to both Cardiff Central and Cardiff Queen Street station, and installing a light rail metro system in the city.[5]