Beth sydd angen i'r rheilffordd Aberystwyth-Amwythig

Mae’r rheilffyrdd wasted wedi bod yn pwnc reit diddorol i mi, dw i byth yn siwr pam ond mae rhywbeth am y rheilffordd sydd yn codi fy nghalon. Fel cynghorydd, dw i wedi bod yn gweithio’n galed arno fe, gan gynnwys rhoi holiadur drwy’r mwyafrif o flychau post yn Ward y Gogledd gwanwyn diwethaf!

Yn 2018, daw masnachfraint (franchise) newydd i Gymru – dewis cwmni newydd i redeg ein rheilffyrdd, gan osod amodau a chyfrifoldebau arnynt. Y tro diwethaf, yn 2003, bu’r Adran Trafnidiaeth yn San Steffan yn penderfynu rhoi masnachfraint “dim-twf” i Arriva – hynny yw, doedd dim cyllid o’r llywodraeth i ychwanegu mwy o wasnaethau neu cerbydau. Y canlyniad diffyg seddi ar y trenau fel da ni’n gweld trwy amser. O fewn y cwpl o ddyddiau diwethaf, cyhoeddwyd bydd Llywodraeth Cymru’n cyfrifol am y masnachfraint nawr.

Mae Grwp Llywio Rheilffyrdd y Cambrain (Cambrian Lines Steering Group) yn cynnal ymgynghoriad am beth fydd rhan-ddeiliad eisiau gweld am ddyfodol y gwasanaethau ar reilffyrdd y Cambrian. Bydd rhain yn bwydo mewn i gyflwyniad ag wneir gan y grŵp i Lywodraeth Cymru. Mae’r dyddiad cau yw’r 30ain mis Tachwedd. Felly rhois i gynnig ger-bron y cyngor tref i ni ymateb. Gweler y cynnig islaw, ynghyd a sawl sylw ychwanegol gennyf

Cynnig:
Dylai’r Cyngor Tref ymateb i’r ymgynghoriad gan ofyn am:

·         Wasanaeth llawn bob awr, er gysondeb ac er wella’r gwasanaethau boblogaidd a gynnigir i drigolion Aberystwyth ar y rheilffordd. Fe ddaw fwy o wasanaethau ym mis Mai – ond mae dal angen gwasanaeth bob awr drwy gydol y dydd.

·         Cysylltiadau gwell â gogledd Cymru (drwy Bermo neu drwy Wrecsam) – ar hyn o bryd mae rhaid aros tua awr yn Amwythig neu Cyffordd Dyfi. Mae’n dorgalonnus iawn pan mae’r tren o Aberystwyth yn gyrraedd Amwythig tra bo’r tren i Ogledd Cymru wrthi’n gadael y gorsaf!

·         Ail-agor y rheilffyrdd o Aberystwyth i Gaefyrddin a Phorthmadog i Fangor er mwyn gwella cysylltiadau a chaniatáu teithio rhwng de-, canol- a gogledd- Gorllewin Cymru, yn ogystal a chysylltu 4 tref prifysgol. Bu rhannau helaeth o Gymru’n colli’u rheilffyrdd yn y cyfnod Beeching, ac byddai ail-adeiladu’r rheilffyrdd yma (ar gyfer cyflymderau uwch wrth gwrs) yn sbarduno datblygiad economaidd, a gan hynny atal y llif o bobl ifanc o Orllewin Cymru a chadw’n cymunedau a’r iaith Gymraeg. Maent eisoes wrthi’n ail-adeiladu rheilffyrdd yng Ngorllewin Iwerddon.

·         Ail-agor gorsafoedd Bow Street a Carno er mwyn agor y cefn gwlad a dod a siopwyr a theithwyr mewn i Aberystwyth

·         Cludo nwyddau ar y rheilffordd, yn arbennig i/o Aberystwyth. Bydd hyn yn golygu llai o loriau drwm ar y priffyrdd i Aberystwyth, sydd ddim yn addas at y fath draffig, ac felly bydd y ffyrdd yn sylweddol fwy diogel ar gyfer pawb.

·         Cysylltiadau gwell rhwng y trenau a’r bysiau

·         Mwy o drenau 4 cerbyd. Mae llawer o’r trenau dau gerbyd yn llawn ofnadwy, ac bu rhaid i mi sefyll o Birmingham i’r Drenewydd yn y gorffenol!

·         Lwpiau newydd yn Borth, Caersws, Westbury a Sutton Bridge Junction, er mwyn helpu adfer yr amserlen pan mae oedi yn digwydd, ac hefyd i baratoi at bosibiliad gwasanaeth bob hanner awr yn y tymor hir, pan mae niferoedd y teithwyr wedi codi mwy. Roedd dau blatfform yn Borth a Chaersws yn y 60au, ac roedd y lwp yn Westbury dal yn eu lle hyd at ail-signalo’r rheilffordd yn y 80au. Bellach mae’r signalau wedi newid eto, ac mae’n hen bryd ail-adeiladu’r lwp. Byddai lwp yn Sutton Bridge Junction yn helpu’r llif ar lein y gororau yn ogystal a’r Cambrian.

·         Canopi estynnedig uwchben y platform yng Ngorsaf Trên Aberystwyth, er mwyn cadw teithwyr rhag y glaw. Ers osod ERTMS, mae’r trenau yn stopio pellach i ffwrdd o’r dref ac felly nid yw’r canopi’n cysgodi hyd yn oed 2 cerbyd erbyn hyn. Mae’r gwlypder yn lledu ar hyd y platfform i gyd pan mae’n glawio, gan achosi problemau i bobl sydd yn cael trafferthion yn cerdded. Rwyf wedi siarad a swyddogion Network Rail, ac mae nhw wedi cadarnhau bod estynnu’r canopi’n amcan tymor hir iddynt (ond buont yn gwrthod gwneud e fel rhan o’r rhaglen i adnewyddu’r orsaf yn 2014-15, sydd yn trueni).

·         Erbyn diwedd y masnachfraint newydd, bydd rhaid chwilio am drenau newydd sydd yn gyflawni’r un dyletswyddau a’r rhai presennol h.y. cysylltiadau coridor, 90mpa neu mwy, toiledau, digon o le i bagiau mawr. Ni fydd y trenau dosbarth 158 yn para am byth yn anffodus, ac mae’n sicrhau bod y trenau nesaf yn addas at reilffyrdd y Cambrian.

Yn ffodus iawn, pasiwyd y cynnig. Felly mae’r Cyngor Tref wedi gosod eu stondin; cawn weld be ddaw o Fae Caerdydd.

What's needed for the Aberystwyth-Shrewsbury line

The railways have always been a really interesting topic to me, I’m not sure why but there’s something about the railways that raises my heart. As a councillor, I’ve been working hard on it, including putting a questionnaire through the majority of letter boxes in North Ward last spring!

In 2018, there will be a new franchise for Wales – choosing a new company to run our railways, setting them conditions and responsibilities. Last time, in 2003, the Department for Transport in Westminster decided to give a “no-growth” franchise to Arriva – that is, there was no finance from government to add more services or carriages. The result was the lack  of seats on the trains that we see all the time. Within the last couple of days, it was announced that the Welsh Government wil now be responsible for the franchise.

The Cambrian Lines Steering Group is holding a consultation about what stakeholders would like to see for the future of Cambrian lines services. These will feed into a presentation that the group will do to the Welsh Government. The closing date is 30th November. So I put a motion before the town council for us to respond. The motion is below, as well as some additional comments that I’ve made.

Motion:

The Town Council should respond to the consultation asking for:

·         Full hourly service, for consistency and to improve the popular services which are offered to Aberystwyth residents on the railway. There will be more services in May – but we still need an hourly service throughout the day.

·         Better connections to north Wales (via Barmouth or via Wrexham) – at present, it’s necessary to wait for about an hour in Shrewsbury or Dyfi Junction. It’s heartbreaking when the train from Aberystwyth arrives into Shrewsbury as the train to North Wales departs!

·         Re-open the railways from Aberystwyth to Carmarthen and Porthmadog to Bangor to improve connections and allow travelling between south-, central- and north- West Wales, as well as connecting 4 university towns. Large parts of Wales lost their railways in the Beeching era, and rebuilding these railways (for higher speeds of course) would spark economic development, and with that stem the outflow of young people from West Wales and help our communities and the Welsh language to survive. They are already rebuilding railways in Western Ireland.

·         Re-open Bow Street and Carno stations to open up the countryside and bring shoppers and commuters into Aberystwyth.

·         Transport goods on the railway, particularly to/from Aberystwyth. This will mean less heavy lorries on the main roads into Aberystwyth, which are unsuitable for this kind of traffic, and therefore the roads will be significantly safer for everyone.

·         Better connections between the buses and the trains

·         More 4-car trains. Many trains are incredibly full, and I’ve had to stand from Birmingham to Newtown in the past.

·         New loops at Borth, Caersws, Westbury and Sutton Bridge Junction, to help restore the timetable when delays occur, and also to prepare for a possible half-hourly service in the long term, when the number of passengers has increased further. There were two platforms in Borth and Caersws in the 1960s, and the Westbury lwp was still in place until the re-signalling in the 1980s. By now the line’s been re-signalled again, and it’s high time to rebuild Westbury loop. A loop at Sutton Bridge Junction would help the flows on the Marches line as well as on the Cambrian.

·         Extended canopy above the platform in Abersytwyth station, to keep passengers out of the rain. Since ERTMS was introduced, the trains stop further away from the town and therefore the canopy does not even shelter 2 carriages by now. The wetness spreads along the whole platform when it rains, causing problems to people who have difficulty in walking. I’ve spoken to Network Rail officers, and they confirmend that extending the canopy is a long term objective for them (but they refused to do it as part of their program to renovate the station in 2014-15, which is a shame).

·         By the end of the franchise, new trains will have to be searched for, which fulfil the same responsibilities as the present ones i.e. corridor connections, 90mph+, toilets, enough space for large items of luggage. Class 158 trains will not last forever unfortunately, and it’s important to ensure that the next trains are suitable for the Cambrian lines.

Fortunately, the motion was passed. So the town council has set out its’ stall; now let’s see what comes from Cardiff Bay.

Gosod plac i goffa T.H. Parry-Williams

Roedd Syr T.H. Parry-Williams yn cawr o lenyddiaeth Cymraeg: bu’n ennill y cadair a’r coron mewn dau eisteddfod genedlaethol, roedd ganddo Gadair yn Adran y Gymraeg yng Ngholeg Prifysgol Cymru Aberystwyth (dyna oedd enw Prifysgol Aberystwyth yn y slawer dydd) pan oedd cyfleoedd felly yn prin iawn; bu’n bardd ac ysgrifwr penigamp gan greu rhestr hir iawn o gyhoeddiadau gampus. T.H. a ysgrifennodd “Hon”, un o’r gerddi Cymraeg mwyaf enwog erioed.

Ganwyd T.H. yn Rhyd-Ddu, Eryri, ond fe symudodd i Aberystwyth i gymryd Cadair yn y Coleg ym 1920, a buodd yn byw yn y dref nes iddo farw yn 1975. Gan oedd e’n byw yn Wern, Ffordd y Gogledd, roedd y ty yn lleoliad gwych i roi plac, i gofio ei gyfraniad i Aberystwyth, Cymru a’r byd. Er bu  ymgais aflwyddianus yn y gorffenol, cafwyd llwyddiant tro hyn. Ar gais y Cyngor Tref, rwyf wedi trefnu dyluniad y plac a’i harchebu.

Dwi’n falch iawn bod y plac wedi mynd i fyny, ac mae’n gyfle gwych i ni yn Aberystwyth dathlu ac ymfalchio yn y llenyddiaeth sydd wedi dod o’r dref a’i chyfoethogi. Mae hybu ymwybodaeth o’r fath pethau yn rhywbeth dylsem ni wneud yn fwy, ac felly yn y tymor canol, gobeithio mae hyn fydd yn cam tuag at gyflwyno golygfa gyfunnol o hanes lenyddol y dref.

Mae’n priodol i mi gwblhau’r blog hyn gyda cherdd gan T.H. Parry-Williams ei hunan:

Bardd

Canodd ei gerdd i gyfeiliant berw ei waed;
Canodd hi, a safodd gwlad ar ei thraed.

Canodd ei gân yn gyfalaw i derfysg Dyn;
Canodd hi, ac nid yw ein llên yr un.

Plaque installed to commemorate T.H. Parry-Williams

T.H. Parry-Williams was a a giant of Welsh literature: he won both the chair and the crown in two National Eisteddfodau, he attained a Chair in the Welsh department in the University of Wales College Aberystwyth (that was Aberystwyth University’s name in the old days) when such opportunities were incredibly rare; he was a masterly poet and writer, creating a long list of splendid publications. T.H. was the author of “Hon”, one of the most famous Welsh poems ever.

T.H. was born in Rhyd-Ddu, Snowdonia, but he moved to Aberystwyth to take a Chair in the College in 1920, and he lived in the town until his death in 1975. Since he lived in Wern, North Road, the house was a great location to place a plaque, considering his contribution to Aberystwyth, Wales and the world. Although there was an unsuccessful attempt in the past, this attempt was successful. At the request of the Town Council, I’ve organised the wording and design of the plaque and ordered it.

I’m very proud that the plaque has gone up, and it’s a great opportunity for us in Aberystwyth to celebrate and take pride in the literature which has come from the town and enriched it. Raising awareness of these kind of things is something that we should be doing more, and therefore in the medium term, I hope this will be a step towards presenting a wide and integrated view of the literary history of the town.

It’s appropriate for me to finish this blog with a poem by T.H. Parry Williams himself. In brackets is my rough, very poor translation;  it can’t capture all aspects of the original!

Bardd

Canodd ei gerdd i gyfeiliant berw ei waed;
Canodd hi, a safodd gwlad ar ei thraed.

Canodd ei gân yn gyfalaw i derfysg Dyn;
Canodd hi, ac nid yw ein llên yr un.

(Poet

He sung his poem/song to the accompaniment of his blood boiling
He sung it, and a country stood on it’s feet
He sung his song as the melody to human commotion
He sung it, and our literature is not the same.)