New £6m bus station finally set to open

Anthony Lewis, local democracy reporter

A new £6m bus station is finally set to open its doors to the public this week, after sitting unused for almost 12 months.

Transport for Wales (TfW) and Rhondda Cynon Taf (RCT) Council have confirmed that the Porth bus interchange will open on Thursday, January 30, before Stagecoach begins operating bus services from the site on Sunday, February 2.

Despite construction being complete in December 2023 local Member of the Senedd Buffy Williams has previously said that the development had sat empty for close to a year.

But earlier this month the First Minister Eluned Morgan said in the Senedd that it would be opening in the coming weeks having originally been planned for completion in the spring of 2023.

Transfer of ownership

Local councillor Ros Davis has said that the delays had been over the transfer of ownership to Transport for Wales.

It’s opening to the public on January 30 to allow visitors to learn more about its features before Stagecoach begins operating bus services from there and a team of customer ambassadors will be on hand to provide information about the new facility and its services.

TfW has worked on the project with RCT Council, which has secured the multi-million-pound funding for the project through the UK government’s Levelling Up fund and the European Regional Development Fund.

Funding for the project has also come from Welsh Government and the Cardiff Capital Region City Deal.

The council has been involved in creating the interchange which has included demolishing of several buildings, selecting a main contractor, and facilitating the construction phase.

Once opened it’ll be operated by TfW with Stagecoach running their local bus services from the interchange.

It features seven bus bays, improved cycling facilities, and a new ticket office for purchasing rail tickets.

It also has toilet facilities, a new taxi rank, and customer information screens that display live departure times for rail and bus services.

Tri-mode trains

The opening of the new facility comes alongside the introduction of brand-new tri-mode trains on the Treherbert line from January 2025 as part of the South Wales Metro.

TfW and Stagecoach will also shortly launch a new integrated rail and bus ticket for communities in the Rhondda Fach.

Marie Daly, chief customer and culture officer at TfW, said: “We’re looking forward to welcoming customers to see the new facility and learn about the bus services on offer. We appreciate the patience of the local community and are delighted to open the facility on Thursday.”

RCT council leader Andrew Morgan added: “The modern bus interchange is a central project of our Porth Regeneration Strategy and will be a regionally-important facility taking advantage of the town’s location as a gateway to both Rhondda valleys and more frequent services via the Metro.

“The hub will bring bus and rail services together making it more convenient for commuters who need to catch the train for one part of their journey and the bus for another. It will aim to tackle several barriers such as walking between sites, having to buy more than one ticket, and waiting between services.

“We acknowledge there has been a prolonged delay in getting the facility ready to open and that it has been much-awaited by residents. However I’m pleased these brand-new facilities will soon be available with the opening arrangements now agreed.”