Security upgrade approved for Wales’ busiest railway station

Kieran Molloy, Local Democracy Reporter

A major security upgrade has been approved for Wales’ busiest railway station ahead of some of the nation’s largest sporting and entertainment events.

Twenty-nine new CCTV cameras will be installed at Cardiff Central station as part of a replacement surveillance system designed to help monitor the huge crowds that pass through the station on major event days.

Planning documents state the existing system, originally installed in the early 2000s and subsequently upgraded several times, has now reached the end of its operational life.

The application says the new system is needed “to continue to effectively and proactively monitor ‘events’ days where significant numbers of passengers use the station”, with modern technology replacing ageing equipment.

The new system will provide “better-quality cameras” with “more extensive coverage to key areas of the station”.

Planning documents read: “The proposed fixing arrangements for the renewed CCTV system have been carefully designed to minimise physical intervention and replicate, wherever practicable, the established fixing methods already present across the station.”

Listed building consent has been approved for 20 of the new cameras with the remaining nine not located in listed areas.

Any works to platform zero, platform eight, and the Penarth Road Entrance “fall outside the scope of requiring listed building consent”.

The application reads: “While the introduction of new CCTV will inevitably alter some aspects of the station’s visual appearance every measure has been taken to ensure that these changes are sympathetic to the historic environment.

“The locations for the new CCTV cameras have been carefully selected to maximise operational accessibility for staff, ensure comprehensive coverage across all platforms, and minimise physical and visual impact on the station’s historic fabric.”

The current events CCTV is described as “essential” but “falls short in terms of coverage and uses outdated technology”.