Blackwood Interchange ( cy, Cyfnewidfa Coed Duon) is a bus station located in the town centre of

Blackwood, Caerphilly Blackwood ( cy, Coed Duon) is a town, community and an electoral ward on the Sirhowy River in the South Wales Valleys administered as part of Caerphilly County Borough. It is located within the historic county of Monmouthshire. The town house ...

South Wales South Wales ( cy, De Cymru) is a loosely defined region of Wales bordered by England to the east and mid Wales to the north. Generally considered to include the historic counties of Glamorgan and Monmouthshire, south Wales extends westwards ...

. It is situated on Gordon Road adjacent to the High Street.

Background

The existing Blackwood Bus Station redeveloped by Caerphilly County Borough Council in 2007. The project cost an approximate £2.4 million. During development, traders in the town centre voiced concerns that "customers will be put off walking through the market when contractors move in" however Councillors reassured concerned individuals with the prospect of a reduction in the business rate for affected businesses. Architect Geraint Jones, unusually, was an internal developer from within Caerphilly Council's own department, at a time where most civic developments in the UK are designed by private practices. The redevelopment of Blackwood Bus Station was judged by Caerphilly Council as successful, helping to end the anti social behaviour associated with the previous concrete structure station, and it has encouraged the subsequent development of the town in the form of new retail units on its periphery and the new Sirhowy Enterprise Way area.

Awards

The 2007 redevelopment won a number of awards nationally, including: *

Welsh Local Government Association The Welsh Local Government Association (WLGA) ( cy, Cymdeithas Llywodraeth Leol Cymru) represents the interests of local authorities in Wales. It is an affiliated member of the Local Government Association of England and Wales and the regional emp ...

Building of the Year 2007 (at the time named the Consortium of Local Authorities in Wales) * RICS Wales Regeneration Award 2008 * ICE Wales Roy Edwards Award 2008

Layout

The bus station is a glass façade terminal building including café, waiting area, canteen, offices and welfare facilities. The stand doors provide access to buses, which park next to the gate on arrival, and then reverse out on departure. It is fully covered from the weather. The station offers a café, named The Plaza, and used to offer public toilet facilities within the station building. The toilet facilities closed in April 2019 due to the increasing financial difficulties faced by Caerphilly Council. Caerphilly Town Centre public toilets re-opened in July 2019 but the fate of facilities in Blackwood remain uncertain. A proposed development, Blackwood Artisan Markets, and the accompanying apartment project, have offered to provide alternative toilets.

Destinations

Blackwood lies as a stop on the Tredegar to Newport route, as well as offering a number of other destinations which begin in the town. These include Pontypridd, New Tredegar, Abertillery, Cardiff, and Ystrad Mynach with transfer for the railway station.

Rail transport

Blackwood railway station closed in 1965, however NAT bus 901 provides travel to nearby

Ystrad Mynach railway station Ystrad Mynach railway station is a railway station serving the town of Ystrad Mynach, south Wales. It is a stop on the Rhymney Line of the Valley Lines network. The nearest bus interchange is Blackwood Interchange, away. From 2020, the rail l ...

in 16 minutes, every hour. Professor Mark Barry, who has consulted the Welsh Government on the

South Wales Metro The South Wales Metro () is an integrated heavy rail, light rail and bus-based public transport services and systems network in South East Wales around the hub of . The first phase was approved for development in October 2013. Works are current ...

project, has written about the potential for Blackwood railway station to reopen as part of a tram-train system connecting other valleys towns from east to west.

References

{{Caerphilly Buildings and structures in Caerphilly County Borough Bus stations in Wales