A small crew has completed a test run of electric trains on the line north of Cardiff and marks the first electric trains to run to Pontypridd in daylight hours.
This is a milestone in the aim to build a new metro for South East Wales.
The test run was completed on the 3rd April between Cardiff Canton Depot to Pontypridd using the new Overhead Line equipment.
Further routes on the Core Valleys Network will see test runs before crew training can begin, with trains entering service later this year.
The Class 756 trains are identical to those that entered service on the Rhymney line in 2023, but these can operate using overhead wires, battery power or as a diesel/battery hybrid.
“It was a fantastic moment to see a train run on the Valleys under electric power for the very first time and today was really special.
“It is a testimony to the hard work that has gone into the project from so many teams across TfW and our infrastructure and supplier partners.
“There is still plenty of work to do before they can enter passenger service but we know customers will really appreciate the huge benefits they will bring.”
Project Manager Alex Cochrane
Responses
When the electrification works are completed then perhaps the team might be asked to travel to England and undertake the Electrification that Network Rail failed to complete between Bristol Parkway and Bristol Temple Meads, Chippenham and Bristol Temple Meads and Between Didcot and Oxford ..
But it will be tram trains running on these valley lines, so the test is irrelevant
I wonder. There is still a big gap in the wiring. The masts lying ready in the cess at Maindy have since been taken away.