// BBC UK NEWS — CRONACA
£200m taxpayer-funded trains sit barely used for three years
Transport for Wales say the tram‑trains are "central" to delivering the faster, more frequent journeys on the South Wales Metro
A new fleet of publicly funded trains that cost more than £200m still remain mostly unused more than three years after the first one was delivered.
They were initially promised to be fully up and running by 2022 but Transport for Wales' boss has said it might not be until the end of 2027 when their tram-trains will be in full service.
Data obtained by the BBC reveals that less than half of the 36 fleet - what TfW call the "final piece" in their £2bn South Wales Metro project - have passed rigorous statutory testing.
TfW chief executive James Price said he wants trains that work "100% well, 100% of the time" before putting them into full service.
King Charles took the controls of a tram-train during a visit to officially open the new South Wales Metro depot that will store the new fleet
TfW's flagship scheme to transform an old Victorian railway into a turn-up-and-go rapid transit service, similar to the London Underground and Manchester Metrolink, is Wales' single-biggest infrastructure project since devolution in 1999.
It has been hit by delays and rising costs and the Welsh government-owned rail operator has missed numerous self-imposed targets to bring the tram-trains into full service across the south Wales valleys.
Officially known as Class 398 Citylink multiple units, they were ordered from Swiss manufacturer Stadler in 2018 and the first arrived in Wales in March 2023.
Some of the South Wales Metro tram-trains have been stored at Transport for Wales' new £100m depot near Cardiff for up to three-and-a-half years