TrawsCambria

TrawsCambria is a brand name applied to a network of long- and middle-distance express bus routes in Wales which are sponsored by the Welsh Assembly Government.

Background

TrawsCambria started in 1979 as the branded experimental coach service route 700 Cardiff-Brecon-Buith Wells-Llandrindod Wells-Newtown-Machynlleth-Dolgellau-Porthmadog-Caernarfon-Bangor. The initial trial summer service operated Fridays to Mondays only with one coach in each direction on the 230-mile route, with walk-on fares. By August duplicate and triplicate operations occurred which resulted in the Welsh Office approving the continuation of the service through the winter.

The following spring saw the 700 service run daily, joined by 701 Cardiff-Swansea-Carmathern-Lampeter-Aberystwyth-Machynlleth-Dolgellau-Betws y Coed-Blaenau Ffestiniog-Llandudno-Rhyl and 702 Cardiff-Cwmbran-Builth Wells-Rhayader-Newtown-Wrexham-Chester-Liverpool.

After 3 years the network continued to run without any subsidy although daily operation on the 700 and 702 routes was cut to Friday-Monday in Winter. Later TrawsCambria 702 was withdrawn. The TrawsCambria name and the original red and green logo was a registered service mark jointly owned by National Welsh Omnibus Services Ltd of Cardiff and Crosville Motor Services Ltd of Chester.

In the late 1980s TrawsCambria also crossed bridges and ran daily to the Isle of Anglesey in the north and Bristol in the south. Following privatisation of the National Bus Company subsidiaries, modifications and cut backs resulted. While profits could be made most of the year, November and February low patronage always resulted in knife edge annual performance.

In the 1990s Crosville continued to run the service jointly with Rhondda Transport, with the main route being the 701 uniquely linking all the Welsh univerities: Glamorgan (at Pontypridd), Cardiff, Swansea, Lampeter, Aberystwyth and Bangor.

By 2000, Crosville has passed to Arriva Group and Rhondda Transport passed to Stagecoach Group. As the network became one route TrawsCambria was then applied to the 701 coach route linking Holyhead and Bristol via Dolgellau, Aberystwyth, Carmarthen and Cardiff. This route was modified in the early 2000s, with the northern terminus changed to Llandudno and withdrawal of the Cardiff to Bristol section.

More recently, the Welsh Assembly Government has started to influence and recreate a renewed network, repositioning TrawsCambria in a new guise with shorter links with good frequencies, running with modern, smart, high specification, low-floor buses. The first stage of this was the late 2004 withdrawal of the 701 north of Aberystwyth and creation of a new express X32 route in its place between Aberystwyth and Bangor.

Since 2004, several additional routes have been added and TrawsCambria has evolved into a network of services.

'Traws', pronounced to rhyme with 'house', is the Welsh equivalent for 'cross' as in cross-country. Therefore TrawsCambria is roughly equivalent to Cross-Cambria or perhaps Trans-Cambrian in English.

Current service

With long-distance limited stop coaches being largely impractical for serving the dispersed population of Wales, the TrawsCambria network has evolved into a compromise solution between express coaches and regular service buses: it provides long-distance journey opportunities between Welsh towns while also catering for shorter-distance passenger flows along its route.

Today's services are mostly operated using a fleet of modern single-deck buses that, while not being of express coach standard, are significantly more comfortable than normal service buses.

Since the introduction of the new low-floor fleet, concerns and complaints have grown about the comfort of having a 'service bus' for a four hour journey from Aberystwyth to Cardiff. There is no on-board toilet or baggage space, which does not make an ideal situation for such a distance with toilet breaks (even though there are limited facilities along the rural route) frowned upon as they would interfere with the timetable.

TrawsCambria is co-ordinated by the Welsh Assembly Government with the actual bus services being provided by a variety of private bus companies. Each company has painted their vehicles in their own corporate colours, but a common design (actually derived from Arriva's identity) is used and TrawsCambria logos are also applied.

Routes

X32: Bangor to Aberystwyth via Porthmadog, Dolgellau and Machynlleth. Runs roughly once each way every two hours Mondays to Saturdays, with two return services on Sunday. This service was introduced in November 2004 and is operated by Arriva North West and Wales.

X40: Aberystwyth to Carmarthen via Aberaeron and Lampeter, plus extensions to Cardiff. The core Aberystwyth to Carmarthen sees a generally hourly service Mondays to Saturdays. Two services a day are extended to/from Cardiff via Swansea and these journeys also operate on Sundays. Service introduced February 2005 and operated jointly by Arriva North West and Wales and First Cymru.

X50: Aberystwyth and Aberaeron to Cardigan. An hourly service between Aberaeron and Cardigan, with 4 journeys extended to/from Aberystwyth. This route complements the slower 550 bus route which runs parallel, apart from a lengthy diversion to New Quay.Service introduced in October 2005 and operated by Richards Brothers, a local independent bus company.

X94: Barmouth to Wrexham via Dolgellau, Bala and Llangollen. A generally hourly service which closely mirrors a railway route closed in 1965.This service was introduced in March 2005 and is operated by Arriva North West and Wales.

704: Newtown to Brecon. A two-hourly service which is unusual in not connecting with any other TrawsCambria services at any point, as well as being on a route that has not seen a regular bus service since 1970. Although Brecon may not be an especially popular destination for Newtown residents, there are onward connections available to Cardiff and Abergavenny by using Sixty-Sixty Buses Service X43.This service started in January 2006 and is operated by Stagecoach Wales.

ee also

*Transport in Wales

External links

* [http://www.trawscambria.org.uk/ TrawsCambria website]
* [http://www.pticymru.com/Traws.htm Traveline Cymru - TrawsCambria]
* [http://www.aberystwyth.org.uk/transport/coaches.shtml Map of TrawsCambria routes]