Andy’s Thought Dump

Before we had a car at the end of 2020, we relied heavily on buses to get about. Back then, they weren’t perfect - timekeeping was questionable at best - but at least they showed up, most of the time. You could get where you needed to go, maybe with a bit of a wait, but it was doable. Since then though? The service has nose-dived. Now it’s like a game of public transport roulette, and most of the time, you lose. We went on a night out a couple of weeks ago - a rare event these days - and thought we’d be sensible, leave the car at home, and take the bus. Only to discover the last bus home was just after 20:30 . Seriously? 8:30pm is now considered “late” enough to stop running buses? I remember when I used to work in Cardiff, I’d catch a bus at around 22:15 - maybe later - and it’d get me to my stop before carrying on to Tredegar and eventually back to base. And I’m pretty sure there was another bus after that. That route is run by Stagecoach, and like every other private operator, th...

Picture this: families piling off excursion trains, coffee in hand from a charming local café inside the old station building. Platforms bustling, Barry Island buzzing. Sounds like a dream, right? Well — we’re only three platforms and a bit of ambition away. Let’s talk about Barry Island station It should be a key gateway — but right now? It’s operating at about 33% of its potential. That’s not a statistic — that’s a cry for help. Platform 1 is the one we all use now  Platform 2 sits unused because it needs track relaying. Platform 3 is too short for longer excursion trains, fenced off from Platform 2 like they’re not even mates, despite being two sides of the same island platform. All three are physically connected. If you’re on one, you’re seconds away from the others. And they all have access to the station entrance - so this isn’t a complicated rebuild. It’s mostly a matter of willpower and investment. So what should we do? Here’s the dream - and it’s not that ...