Wales's £200m tram-trains are barely used three years after arriving

Imagine buying a fleet of 36 shiny new trains and, three years on, most of them still aren't carrying passengers. That's where Wales's biggest infrastructure project stands right now.

The tram-trains, which cost more than £200m of public money, were meant to be fully running by 2022. Transport for Wales (TfW), the Welsh government-owned rail operator, now says full service will come by the end of 2027.

What happened?

Only 16 of the 36 three-carriage units have passed the strict safety testing required by the rail regulator. Data obtained by the BBC through a Freedom of Information request shows that testing can take anywhere from six weeks to two years.

Six tram-trains are currently carrying passengers in testing across the valleys network. They have occasionally been pulled from service because of what TfW called "teething issues" and software problems.

TfW chief executive James Price called it "frustrating but not unexpected". He says he wants trains that work "100% well, 100% of the time" before a full launch.

Why is this such a big deal?

The tram-trains are the "final piece" of the £2bn South Wales Metro. That's the plan to turn old Victorian valley railways into a turn-up-and-go service, a bit like the London Underground or Manchester's Metrolink tram network.

It is the biggest infrastructure project in Wales since devolution in 1999. The goal is to double services from two to four trains an hour between Cardiff and Aberdare, Merthyr Tydfil and Treherbert. That was also promised for 2022.

Rail expert Gareth Dennis says the trains are very ambitious: part tram, part train, running on batteries where there are no overhead wires. Reform's transport spokesperson Jason O'Connell asked why most of them were "just sitting in a depot gathering dust".

TfW says the electrification work only finished in March, after Covid and Ukraine war supply problems. Swiss maker Stadler says it is working closely with TfW on "minor issues".

What's next?

Price recently met Stadler's chief executive in Germany to try to speed things up. Because one software package controls the whole fleet, he says a fix on one train can reach all of them.

In the meantime, valley commuters have had newer Class 756 trains since 2024. Full tram-train service across the 105-mile (170km) network is now pencilled in for 2027.