Welsh Government ‘not in a position’ to confirm opening dates for Cardiff bus station development

Ted Peskett, local democracy reporter

The Welsh Government has been unable to provide specific dates for the completion of each element of Cardiff’s highly anticipated city centre bus station development.

Work started on the highly anticipated Cardiff bus station, which is a Welsh Government project, at Central Square in 2019. The city has been without a dedicated bus station since 2015.

The building, which will be eight stories in height will contain a 14-bay bus station, 318 apartments, two floors of office space and a retail unit.

The bus station will be operated by Transport for Wales.

We asked the Welsh Government when the bus station will be completed and ready for use by passengers.

Summer 2023

A Welsh Government spokesperson said: “Main construction works on the bus interchange will be completed by ISG towards the end of 2022. Transport for Wales will then conduct a fit-out to get the interchange ready for passengers to use from summer 2023.”

When asked again for a more specific date for the completion of the bus station, when passengers will be able to use it and the completion dates for the apartments, office space and retail unit, a Welsh Government spokesperson said they are “not in a position” to give definite dates at the moment.

When asked in an interview about Cardiff bus station, the leader of Cardiff Council, Huw Thomas, said he was “as keen as anybody” to get that bus station opened.

However, when pressed for a date on when the first bus will leave Cardiff bus station, Cllr Thomas asked to come back to us with this information.

The Cardiff council press office referred us to Welsh Government, who provided the statement above.

The Welsh Government bought the underlying land for the bus station for £15 million and are spending another £15 million on the fit-out works for the station. A spokesperson for ISG said in 2020 that the anticipated completion date for the development was 2022.

However, following a number of setbacks, that date has been pushed back to 2023.

Cllr Thomas added in the interview: “When I was first sat in this chair five years ago, I said getting that done was a priority. It is getting built, we can see it coming out of the ground.

“I think what needs to be understood in the context of that bus station is, yes it has taken some time to deliver, but part of the reason for that is some of the funding challenges that needed to be overcome. They were overcome and as a result of that, the only contribution the council has put in – and the taxpayers of Cardiff by extension – is the land.”