June 12, 2005
Passenger rail service returned after a hiatus of 41 years to the Vale of Glamorgan, a county borough in southeastern Wales. This service began on a regular basis two days after the Vale of Glamorgan Line was formally dedicated. The festivities that day included a train breaking through an inaugural banner at the Bridgend railway station, which dates to 1850 and marks the line’s western terminus.
Andrew Davies (born in 1952), the Welsh Assembly Government’s minister for economic development and transport, took part in these festivities. He hailed the resumption of passenger rail operations in this region as “a historic day for transport in Wales.” Davies also stated,
“The restoration of passenger services to the Vale of Glamorgan after 40 years represents a major milestone in the delivery of an efficient and integrated transport infrastructure for Wales.”
Along with helping to open the Vale of Glamorgan line at the Bridgend railway station on that Friday, Davies attended ceremonies at the following two stations on the line: one located in the town and community of Llantwit Major; and the other based in the village and community of Rhoose and serving Cardiff Airport in that vicinity.
The latter of those two facilities is called Rhoose Cardiff International Airport railway station (the Welsh translation for “Rhoose Cardiff International Airport” is “Maes Awyr Rhyngwladol Caerdydd Y Rhws”), and it holds a unique record among stations in the United Kingdom (UK). National Rail – the trading name for a group that represents passenger train operating companies in England, Scotland, and Wales – officially recognizes Rhoose Cardiff International Airport railway station as having the longest name for a UK station in both English (a total of 33 letters) and Welsh (28 letters altogether, with dd, ng, and rh treated as single letters in that language).
The Vale of Glamorgan Line has a total length of 29 miles (46.7 kilometers). There are now 14 stations operating on this line. (The accompanying photo of a train approaching Rhoose Cardiff International Airport railway station was taken in 2011.)
Photo Credit: Jaggery / Freight train approaching Rhoose level crossing / CC BY-SA 2.0
For more information on the launch of the Vale of Glomorgan Line, please check out https://www.networkrailmediacentre.co.uk/news/historic-day-for-rail-passengers-in-wales
Transportation History 
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