A fleet of vintage buses descended on Bargoed on the weekend to help mark the official opening of the town’s new bus station.
The revamped station, which cost £2m, is the final piece of the jigsaw to create a public transport hub at the northern end of Bargoed town centre.
Cllr Rob Gough, cabinet member for public protection, engineering and transport said: “This fantastic facility will benefit both local residents and visitors to the town alike.
“With its close proximity to Bargoed’s railway station, this will help improve transport links to and from the town, and together with the other regeneration works currently underway, will really help position Bargoed as a shopping and business destination fit for the 21st Century.”
The new bus station includes a new pedestrian link to the High Street.
Wales’ Regeneration Minister Huw Lewis, who is also the AM for Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney, said: “I am delighted to be here to witness this latest development in the wider Bargoed regeneration programme.
“The £7.65 million funding package backed by the Welsh Government has made a crucial difference to Bargoed town centre.
“Supporting all aspects of this regeneration programme with an effective transport link is crucial to the success of the project and the opening of this bus station supports just that.
“I thank everyone involved for their hard work and commitment in developing both this bus station and the wider project, and also the public for their patience whilst the work was underway.”
Bus services 1, 2 and 3, along with Service 50 will serve the new bus station, while services C9, C17, 14 and 27 will continue to terminate at Hanbury Square in the short-term.
The project has been funded through the EU’s Convergence European Regional Development Fund, and through the Welsh Government’s Targeted Match Funding, Transport Grant and Heads of the Valleys Programme.