Cardiff Council has approved plans to develop a metro style public transport system to reduce car travel among commuters into the city and help grow the local economy. Officers will now work up a delivery strategy and try to secure funding from various sources.

A complete metro network for the region is likely to cost £4Bn and could, its supporters claim, be complete within 16 years. A combination of ‘tram train’, bus rapid transit and electrification of existing rail networks form part of the metro proposals.

Currently over 77,000 people commute into the city from outside Cardiff each day and 80% of these workers travel by car. Over 30,000 properties are set to be built in the city which, the council says, could lead to a 32% increase in traffic. The idea of the new metro system is to create a 50:50 split between those travelling into the city by car and public transport.

Cardiff Councillor Graham Hinchey said: “It is essential to make public transport an attractive option by reducing travel times, improving the infrastructure and increasing availability by providing additional services.”

Work will initially focus on delivering improvements to the North West of Cardiff. Phase one between the city centre and Cardiff Bay will cost around £18M. Phase two connecting Callaghan Square to the railway station will cost £44M and transforming the disused City Line and linking with improvements towards Rhonda Cynon Taf is to cost around £161M.

(Photo: Seth Whales)

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