South Wales Metro: Costs spiral more than £260m to £1bn

The cost of building the South Wales Metro has rocketed more than £260m to £1bn.

Transport for Wales (TfW) blamed inflation and delays caused by the Covid pandemic for the price spiralling from its original £734m estimate.

The Metro is aimed at improving south-east Wales' rail network, is due to be completed in 2025.

Chief executive James Price said he was doing "everything possible" to control costs.

The first Swiss-built Class 231 Flirt trains have been introduced ahead of schedule on the Rhymney Valley line to Cardiff.

They will be joined by the Class 398 tram-train, which has now arrived for testing.

At a naming ceremony for a Flirt train in Caerphilly, Mr Price said the soaring cost of raw materials had also helped pushed the Metro price-tag to £1bn.

He said: "We're probably three-quarters of the way through the programme now, so opportunities for things to go significantly wrong are gradually reducing.

"I'm pretty confident that we're in the right ballpark and we're doing the right things to control it."

The Metro is largely being funded by the Welsh government.

Deputy climate change minister Lee Waters said he hoped the new trains would get people out of their cars, especially following a dramatic drop in passenger numbers since Covid.

"Hopefully people will start to have faith that things are getting better," he said.

"Now the trains are getting better, please give them a try."

Passenger Rachel Stephens, from Treherbert, in Rhondda Cynon Taf, is planning to use the new trains to go to Cardiff.

She complained the current trains were sometimes late or cancelled and their "general upkeep" was not good enough.

Ms Stephens said she was pleased with the new trains on the Rhymney Valley line.

"You can plug your phone in to charge your laptop if you want to do work and the seats are really comfortable," she added.