New railway stations part of £14bn UK government funding promise
The prime minister has committed the UK government to a £14bn plan to “transform” Wales’ railways.
Sir Keir Starmer has backed Transport for Wales (TFW) proposals for 43 schemes, saying it would put the country “on the front foot”.
While cash is confirmed for seven train stations at Magor and Undy, Llanwern, Cardiff East, Newport West, Somerton, Cardiff Parkway and Deeside, specific funding is yet to be announced for other projects.
A Welsh government source told the BBC it was “the biggest day in devolution”, but opponents accused the Labour UK government of “reheating” old announcements.
Timescales have not been confirmed, but First Minister Eluned Morgan said the 43 projects promised would take about 15 years to roll out.
The UK government had already announced £445m for rail projects in Wales at last June’s spending review, and has now explained that money will go towards building each of the seven stations, alongside upgrades in south and north Wales.
It has also backed a much longer list of schemes, which will need extra money to be allocated over the coming years.
Sir Keir said: “This government is turning the page on historic dither and delay with seven new stations, thousands of jobs, and a generational commitment to build a rail network fit for Wales’ future.”
Asked by BBC Wales if the plan would happen regardless of who wins the Senedd election, he said it is a “long-term commitment” from the UK government.
Welsh Labour leader Morgan said the £14bn investment would come over a “prolonged period of time”.
Morgan, who hosted Sir Keir at the Taff’s Well TFW depot on Wednesday, said the Welsh government had been working on the proposals “since the moment I became first minister”.
She said: “We are now in an unprecedented position to deliver the next chapter of transformation for rail services in Wales. We have secured long-term commitments to key projects and a renewed ambition for our rail network.”
Initial work on five of the south east stations will begin later this year, with construction on two of them beginning in 2029. It is expected that Magor and Undy will be the first station to be completed.
An upgrade to the railway line to allow the new stations is also planned.
The UK government claims Cardiff Parkway in east Cardiff – whose private developers had plans for the station approved in January 2025 after years of delays – could serve 800,000 passengers every year and support around 6,000 jobs.
Ministers announced that it had agreed a plan with Welsh government and private investors to help fund the new station near St Mellons.
Cardiff Central Station is also being upgraded with work due to begin this spring and set to be complete by 2029.
Improvements to the Wrexham to Liverpool line will allow for two trains per hour and a new station at Deeside Industrial Park.
The UK government also backed a wider “vision” for Welsh rail in a plan from the Welsh government’s TFW transport body.
It includes a document of 43 schemes which are “ready to move forward, making them ideal candidates for investment”, estimated by TFW to be worth £14bn.
The schemes stretch across Wales and include:
- “Cardiff crossrail” extensions to Newport Road, Pierhead Street and Alexandra Head
- New stations on the Core Valley lines
- Electrification to Holyhead and Llandudno
- St Clears station
- Pembroke Dock and Milford Haven frequency enhancements
- Swansea Bay and West Wales Metro Main line stations
- Bridgend to Maesteg Shuttle
- Capacity improvements at Chester
- Direct service between Cardiff to Liverpool
Most of the schemes in the list are not yet funded, and would need cash to be assigned in future UK government spending reviews.
Why does Wales not receive money from HS2?
New stations in £445m 10-year Wales rail plan
According to the UK government, TFW estimates the total cost of all the schemes under consideration to be “up to £14bn”.
UK ministers say the “exact, additional funding allocations” will be confirmed at future spending reviews, but that the UK government is committed to delivering the schemes “as quickly as possible”.
The announcement comes with less than three months to go until May’s Senedd election, with the polls consistently suggesting that Labour is lagging behind Plaid Cymru and Reform UK.
The past year has seen tensions between some Labour politicians in Cardiff and their colleagues in London, with those in the Senedd accusing Sir Keir’s government of failing to deliver enough for Wales.
Morgan recently said the prime minister would only be welcome to campaign in Wales if he brought “goodies” such as investment commitments.
Rail funding for Wales has been a long-running issue in Welsh politics in the absence of any knock-on funding as a result of the HS2 development in England.
The UK government has faced repeated calls from all the parties in the Senedd to deliver extra rail investment for Wales, both under Labour and the Conservatives.
A Welsh government source said the announcement had followed two years of “quiet work” behind the scenes.
“To have the green light in a £14bn transformation is enormous and now just need the rail industry to move as fast as possible,” they said.
The Welsh Conservatives accused Labour of cutting rail funding by half compared to what was delivered by previous Tory UK governments.
Mims Davies, Tory shadow Welsh secretary, said: “This is a desperate visit to the last chance saloon by the deeply unpopular UK Labour government, ahead of the Senedd election where it is on course to lose power in Cardiff Bay after almost three decades.
“As always, today’s announcement raises more pressing questions than it answers–the devil is in the lack of detail.”
Plaid Cymru’s Westminster Leader, Liz Saville Roberts, said the announcement would “feel like déjà vu to many people in Wales”, saying the new stations had already been announced in last year’s Spending Review.
“Reheating old promises is not the generational transformation Wales was promised,” she said.
Welsh Liberal Democrat MP David Chadwick also accused the government of “reheating” old announcements ahead of the Senedd election.
“There is still no commitment to electrifying the north Wales or south Wales mainlines, something businesses consistently tell us is essential to unlocking real economic growth across the whole country.”
A Reform UK Wales spokesperson said that during Welsh Labour’s time in government “they’ve shamefully underfunded our transport network, and failed to deliver key projects like the M4 Relief Road”.
A Green Party spokesperson called for rail infrastructure to be fully devolved to Wales.
“People have had enough of the UK government starving Wales of rail investment, then spinning a small proportion of what we’re owed as something ground-breaking,” they said.
In March, BBC Wales is holding a live debate in Wrexham with a panel of politicians ahead of the Senedd election.