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A direct train service between Crosskeys and Newport has been reintroduced for the first time in almost 60 years.

On Monday, December 13, the 6.49am service left Crosskeys as part of Transport for Wales’ new timetable.

The service has been reintroduced as part of the wider South Wales Metro project.

The Ebbw Vale Line was closed to passenger services in April 1962. It was not until 2008 when it was reopened to passengers with a service between Ebbw Vale and Cardiff Central.

As a result, passengers travelling from Crosskeys to Newport would have had to travel on the direct services into Cardiff and then change trains to continue to Newport.

However, from Sunday, December 12, there will be a new hourly service between Crosskeys and Newport until 9.20pm, Monday to Saturday, and the service will run every two hours on Sundays. Services will also call at Risca and Pontymister, Rogerstone and Pye Corner stations.

Around £1.2million was spent upgrading track to reintroduce the direct service.

Islwyn Senedd Member Rhiannon Passmore welcomed the new service.

She said: “I have campaigned since being elected to the Senedd in 2016 for an additional service to serve the communities of Islwyn. This is the beginning. There is much more than needs to be done. The railway line that runs through Islwyn is so important.”

She added that she will continue to campaign for the direct service to reach Newbridge.

Deputy Minister for Climate Change, with a responsibility for transport, Lee Waters said the Welsh Government said it was keen to extend the service to Ebbw Vale as soon as possible

Colin Lea, Planning and Performance Director at TfW, said: “Restoring direct services between the lower Ebbw Valley and Newport has been an important ambition for us and we are delighted passengers will now benefit from the hard work undertaken to make this happen. It is also an important step in the development of the South Wales Metro, as plans develop to further improve the Ebbw Vale Line.”

What is the South Wales Metro project?

The metro will be a public transport network involving new and existing railway lines and bus routes, with the aim of making travel within south Wales quicker, more frequent, cheaper and more environmentally friendly, with increased capacity on journeys.

The project is being carried out by Transport for Wales as part of the Cardiff Capital Region City Deal and is costing around £800m.

The project will see more than 170km of track electrified.