Residents in Gwaelod-y-Garth feel ‘isolated’ and ‘cut off’ from Cardiff with no bus service to take them to the shops or the doctor's
Credit: alainlm (no changes were made to this image, license in description)
“I’ve lost my independence. I feel isolated. This week, the only time I’ll go out is on Thursday morning for an hour. Other than that, I don’t go anywhere.”
Just like Patricia Stone, older residents here have to walk 30 minutes to Taff’s Well or Gwaelod-y-Garth industrial estate to catch buses into Cardiff city centre or the northern city suburb of Whitchurch.
“If only we had a bus service – only a small bus – twice a week to go to ASDAs and Whitchurch, just to get out of the house,” she goes on.
“My optician is in Whitchurch. I had to go two weeks running and walk to Taff’s Well and back again which was hard work. Some of my friends can’t even do that, they’ve got to rely on their families.”
I ask how she manages to eat—is it not simpler to shop for groceries online?
“Then I wouldn’t go out at all,” she says. “I get a taxi. John, he lives in Taff’s Well and a lot of people use him if they want to go to the hospital. It costs me £10 for two ways to ASDAs. But John is in his 70s now, so I don’t know how long that will last.”
The 136, 62 and 63 buses run hourly but reaching the stops prove difficult
Crossing busy roads to reach hard-to-access stops is difficult, Pat tells meThe bus stops on Securicor, Heol Goch, are a 30-minute walk away – a challenge for many villagers in Gwaelod-y-Garth Credit: The Cardiffian
And it’s not just the difficulty of shopping—without public transport, meeting friends is a challenge.
“I used to go into Whitchurch for coffee and you might meet somebody there to chat to. All of us used to go on a Friday,” Pat recounts wistfully. “But now, I can’t do that.”
Pat’s story is one shared by many after the G1 bus service stopped in April 2024. The route connected Garth Olwg at the top of the village to Gabalfa via Whitchurch.
When it stopped running, older residents and non-drivers felt “left on the shelf,” Pat says.
“Although I am very lucky to have friends who would gladly take me, I would not like to ask on a regular basis.”
Lindsey Patmore
Lindsey Patmore has lived in Gwaelod-y-Garth all her life Credit: Lindsey Patmore
Lindsey Patmore is semi-retired and has lived in Gwaelod-y-Garth all her life: “I don’t drive, so I used to rely on the bus to get to the supermarket. There is no way I could manage to carry a weekly shop back from Taff’s Well.
“Although I am very lucky to have friends who would gladly take me, I would not like to ask on a regular basis.”
Lindsey also expresses her concern for others in the village, as while many rely on their cars now, as they get older, they may no longer be able to.
Helen Bancroft is younger, but shares these concerns. She moved to the village a couple of years ago with her daughter: “I’ve broken my wrist so I can’t drive currently. Now I’ve got to walk all the way down to Taff’s Well and get on a bus there.
“I’m in my 50s, I’m fit and healthy. But for some of the villagers, the G1 was their lifeline. They haven’t got that anymore, and a lot of them wouldn’t be able to walk down to Taff’s Well.
“Even if they did, coming back up to Gwaelod is really quite steep – and that would be a lot to walk for some of the more elderly or infirm people.
“I wouldn’t walk down there when it’s dark and it’s so slippery with the leaves and the frost. In the winter, I’ll ask my partner to drive me. Not everybody is so lucky.”
These challenges are nothing new for Gwaelod-y-Garth residents. The loss of the G1 marks another chapter in the village’s struggle for reliable public transport.
In 2020, the G1 bus route was transferred to Fflecsi — an on-demand transport service run by Adventure Travel in partnership with Transport for Wales and Cardiff Council.
Our on-demand service is perfect for your local travelling needs and to support local businesses, the service operates in the Cardiff North zone Monday to Saturday.
The G1 bus route became an on-demand service in 2020
It was not popular with everyone.
“Fflecsi was a nightmare,” Pat recalls. “You had to phone up for it. I said, ‘Can I have the bus at 9 o’clock by the school,’ and that was an hour before. They said ‘No, you’ve got to be ready and phone 10 minutes before you’re ready to go.’
“A week after I tried that, they said ‘You’ll have to wait an hour.’ It just didn’t work at all.”
The G1 route was then reinstated as a regular service and heavily subsidised under the Welsh Government’s Bus Emergency Support scheme after the Covid-19 pandemic. In April 2024, this funding was replaced by local authority tenders.
This is our brand new minibus for route G1, which connects @gwaelod with North #Cardiff – It’s purpose built with low floor DDA access, our dark red seat fabric and of course, our ‘Bws Blackberry’ paint. It will be ready in November and will be perfect for tight roads. pic.twitter.com/6IwOurpOrY
In 2022, a leaner bus was provided by Adventure Travel when it was reinstated as a regular public service
The change was quite sudden, says one of the local councillors.
“The April finish of the G1 bus was prompted by the Welsh Government ending this funding,” Rhys Livesy, councillor for Pentyrch and St Fagans, said.
“They announced in October 2023 that it would end in March 2024, but there was no real warning. I don’t think anyone expected that, even within the council.”
A spokesperson for Cardiff Council said: “The tender responses received for the G1 bus service were extremely high and far more than anticipated. The subsidy was not viable to continue to support the bus service.
“Council officers investigated the option to implement a replacement community bus service, but unfortunately this was not viable as the proposed operator didn’t have the appropriate licence or requirements or able to take payments.”
It breaks my heart. We need to raise awareness of these problems and start solving them.”
Coun Helen Lloyd Jones
This issue extends far beyond Gwaelod-y-Garth.
Lord Mayor of Cardiff and Councillor for Radyr and Morganstown, Helen Lloyd Jones, said she also sees similar issues in her ward.
“If the bus doesn’t come, older people still wait,” she said. “They wait and hope. And we’ve got hardly any bus stops in our ward with seats or shelters.
“We have a lot of old pavements – that is a trip hazard for them. It breaks my heart. We need to raise awareness of these problems and start solving them.”
Retired lecturer, Lynn Abel, said she has resorted to using costly taxis.
“We have the same in Fairwater, the 66 was cancelled a year last October,” she said. “It is a good walk to Llandaff to catch a bus, too far for a lot of us.
“The number of buses at those stops has been drastically reduced. It can be a long wait. I have had to get an Uber back sometimes as I have been completely stranded.”
The Cardiffian contacted the Older People’s Commissioner for Wales, whose role it is to act as a voice for the senior population. Her response suggests the issues of isolation are all too common.
“A third of older people who responded to a poll undertaken by the Commissioner earlier this year said they find it difficult to access public transport in their area,” Commissioner Rhian Bowen-Davies said in a statement.
“It highlighted that one in five people aged 70+, and nearly one in four older people living with health issues or disabilities are now using their bus pass less frequently than two years ago.
“Reasons included fewer buses, unreliable or delayed services, changes to routes or the location of bus stops and difficulties finding information about routes or timetables.”
The Commissioner is inviting older people across Wales to share their views and ideas about how we can create a Wales that leads the way for older people.
— Older People’s Commissioner for Wales (@talkolderpeople) December 13, 2024
The Older People’s Commissioner for Wales is urging older residents to share their concerns directly
She concluded: “Without access to public transport, a growing number of older people will find themselves with less independence and at greater risk of loneliness and isolation.
“Many of the issues could be tackled through ensuring that older people are involved in planning and decision-making. It’s also crucial that community transport services are supported.”
A survey conducted by Pentyrch Community Council in July 2024 supports her comments.
Data has been taken from the survey responses collected by Pentyrch Community Council (PCC).
The digital version was sent to The Cardiffian via email and the PCC agreed to the publication of the results. Contact the PCC to request further details of the survey. The survey responses were collated from both paper and digital replies. A copy of the paper survey was delivered to each of the 500 households within Gwaelod-y-Garth. There were 98 responses.
But for Gwaelod-y-Garth “there is no money available to implement even a reduced service G1 so any solution will rely on people in the community,” Pentyrch Community Council said.
“Cardiff Council have offered to provide an electric car to be used by the community council,” Andrea Gibson, councillor for Pentyrch and St Fagans, added.
They are now looking for volunteers to help launch the scheme.
Details for contacting Pentyrch Community Council can be found here
