Western Gateway welcomes funding to improve the South Wales Main Line

This new study will be funded by the UK Government and will consider a range of options, among which is the development of five brand new stations between Cardiff and Severn Tunnel, building on the recommendations of the Burns Commission.

The Western Gateway Partnership brings together local leaders, business and research from across South Wales and Western England to work together to overcome challenges and reach Net Zero.

This comes ahead of the publication of the Western Gateway Rail Vision 2050 which will outline the area’s ambition for rail travel in the future.

Katherine Bennett CBE, Chair of the Western Gateway Partnership, said: “It is great to see this joint announcement today from Welsh and UK Governments. As chair of the Western Gateway I know that improving our public transport is a key priority for local leaders across South Wales and Western England.

“We are launching our Western Gateway Rail Vision 2050 later this year which will complement this study and emphasise the compelling case for investing in our area. I look forward to working with both Welsh and UK Government to ensure we can use this to drive investment and unlock the potential of our communities.”

Cllr Jane Mudd, Vice Chair of the Western Gateway Partnership, said: “We have such potential in our area with innovative companies, high tech clusters and great universities.  We want to add £34 billion to the UK economy and lead efforts to reach net zero but are held back by low productivity which is in part because of historic transport challenges.

“This announcement is great news and I am confident that our Western Gateway Rail Vision for 2050 can play a key role in helping to make the case for investing further in our area.”