Passengers planning to travel between Ebbw Vale, Newport and Cardiff Central will face two periods of disruption as work to upgrade approaches its final stage.

A replacement bus service will be in place along the length of the line on Saturday 30 September and Sunday 1 October, while there will be a 19-day closure of the line from Wednesday 15 November until Sunday 3 December.

Buses will also replace trains during the later closure.

As part of a £70m upgrade, Network Rail will be laying new track at Newbridge station as well as in the Crosskeys area this weekend and the bus replacement will operate between Ebbw Vale Town and Cardiff Central.

Once the 19-day closure later in the year comes to an end, two Transport for Wales (TfW) trains per hour will operate from Ebbw Vale Town – one to Newport, the other to Cardiff Central.  The new services will be introduced when a new timetable is introduced on Monday 11 December.

Funding for the upgrade was provided by Blaenau Gwent Borough Council by way of a loan from the Welsh Government.

An additional £17m was provided by the UK Department of Transport and Network Rail which funded both signalling upgrades and track renewal. Work has been ongoing throughout the year.

New platforms have been constructed at Newbridge and Llanhilleth stations, new signal posts have been installed and track works have taken place along the route.

Nick Millington, Network Rail’s route director for Wales and Borders, said: “I’m delighted that we are now entering the final phase of work which will transform how passengers travel on the Ebbw Vale line.

“We are proud to provide low carbon journeys and support Welsh Government ambitions including its modal shift away from private cars. It will also help connect communities and boost the local economy.  I’d like to again thank passengers and our neighbours for continuing to bear with us as we complete these vital improvements.”

Colin Lea, Transport for Wales performance and planning director, added: “We’re pleased to see the Ebbw Vale line improvements reaching their final phase. This will provide two trains an hour all the way to Ebbw Vale Town, half to Cardiff and half to Newport.  We’d like to thank customers for being patient while our partners at Network Rail have been delivering the work over the last 18 months.

“While these last bits of engineering work take place there will be road replacement services in operation and customers should check their journeys before travelling.