A new bus service is set to launch to help people in parts of Caerphilly borough travel to The Grange University hospital, First Minister Mark Drakeford has announced. The direct service will connect those in Blackwood and Newbridge to the hospital based in Cwmbran.
The "super hospital" opened four months ahead of schedule to help with the second coronavirus wave. Costing £350m, it saw the closure of the two existing A&E departments within Aneurin Bevan University Health Board - the Royal Gwent in Newport and Nevill Hall in Abergavenny. Both facilities became minor injury units.
Over the last year-and-a-half, many living parts of Caerphilly criticised accessibility to the hospital, which had no direct bus route. WalesOnline spoke to patients who said it took them over two hours to travel there.
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Mr Drakeford responded to a question about the issue by Caerphilly MS Hefin David at the Senedd chamber. He said: “We’re in the final stages of finalising arrangements to introduce that new direct bus link to the hospital from Blackwood, Newbridge and Pontypool, and that service will begin within a few weeks, in July. You can get more Caerphilly stories by signing up to our WalesOnline newsletter here
“It will be a direct contract between the Welsh Government and the bus operator here in south Wales in order to get that service to happen...The service will operate on an hourly basis throughout the day, and we will carefully monitor its effectiveness over the first six months. That direct service will also connect with other bus and rail services at key hubs and interchanges.”
Mr Drakeford said an exact start date will be announced shortly. MS Dr David said the effectiveness of the six-month trial would be monitored closely. He said a second stage of plans would be rolled out within his constituency including Nelson and Ystrad Mynach. A third stage would involve making the route sustainable.
Although he said the announcement was a positive first step, he said there is still a way to go to improve access for his constituents. He said: "This is one part of the journey but not the final destination."
