Report on Bangor-Afon Wen line disappoints railway campaigners. Focus on train-tram rejects full heavy rail route.
Traws Link Cymru started in 2013. They want lines reopened, like Aberystwyth to Carmarthen, plus Bangor to Afon Wen. New lines could help Wales grow economically and boost communities.
A Senedd group will discuss a petition with over 12,900 signatures. People want the old lines back. Councillor Elfed Wyn ap Elwyn submitted it after walking 206 miles from Bangor to Cardiff for the campaign.
AtkinsRéalis made a report for Transport for Wales. The 219-page report favors a train-tram line, which couldn’t carry freight.
TLC’s chair, Dylan Wilson-Lewis, is polite but bummed. The report focuses on a light rail idea, but TLC wants the full heavy rail route back. It would reconnect the region to the rail network.
Heavy rail could use existing trains, improving connections in Wales and beyond. Regular mainline services could extend through the region and freight services would become possible. The Bangor-Afonwen line could boost the northwest’s economy, but the report misses this.
Light rail is bad because trains can’t go through Caernarfon. It’s not ambitious enough. A new light rail fleet would also cost extra, and these trains could only run on that one line.
Existing bus services need to connect to the railway. Buses could take people to Caernarfon or Pwllheli, where passengers can get on the train.