Train accessibility

Details of our fleet will be included within this webpage as and when each type of train is refurbished or withdrawn and replaced.

Alternatively, you can access the info below.

Making Rail Accessible: A guide to our fleet of trains| Open as PDF

 

Assisted travel team

Our Assisted Travel Team can provide advice, book assistance and arrange tickets for your journey, regardless of train operator.

To make a booking or for more information about Passenger Assist call our Assisted Travel team: 03330 050 501 (Open 24 hours every day, except 25 and 26 December) RelayUK: 18001 03330 050 501 or visit tfw.wales/accessible-travel. You can also simply “turn up and go” without booking assistance in advance. We’ll provide assistance to get you to your destination.

 

Assistance during your journey

Should you require assistance with boarding and alighting the train, this will be provided by the conductor on the train or by station staff where staff are present. Details of which stations have staff and the times they are available to assist can be found in our booklet ‘Making Rail Accessible - helping older and disabled passengers.

 

Wheelchairs and powered mobility scooters on trains

We can accommodate wheelchairs and powered mobility scooters with dimensions of up to 700mm x 1200mm (including footplates), with a turning radius of 900mm, and a maximum combined weight (wheelchair and passenger) of 300kg. Please check the dimensions of your wheelchair and powered mobility scooter before travel to avoid disappointment if they cannot be carried on the train.

 

Universal toilets on-board

All our fleet have Universal accessible toilets as well as baby changing facilities. Please check with railway staff or door signs to ensure you access the right part of the train.

 

On-board universal toilet dimensions

Units that have a universal toilet on board for passengers with reduced mobility have a door width of 800mm, unless otherwise stated. Please see the specific class of train within this document for further details.

Please note that these dimensions may differ from fleet to fleet. Class 158 has a smaller universal accessible toilet and limited room to manoeuvre a wheelchair. For further information please visit the Class 158 page within this document. If you would like further assistance to determine which services are operated by these trains, please contact the Assisted Travel team. They can assist in planning your journey and can suggest alternative services for you.

 

On-board audio and visual information

Most trains in our fleet provide on-board audio and visual information. Please check before boarding.

 

Alternative formats

All out documentation confirms to the Welsh language standards/Welsh language Act and are available Bilingually.

Alternative formats of all our documents are free of charge, from the Customer Relations team. The team can provide alternative formats such a large print, Braille or audio versions.

We will provide the large-print document within seven days of receiving your request, and any other formats as soon as possible.

If you would like copies of these guides or any other TfW publications in an alternative format, please contact us in the following ways:

Telephone the Customer Relations team on 03333 211 202
Lines are open from 08:00 - 20:00 Monday to Saturday and 11:00 - 20:00 on Sundays (except 25 and 26 December).

Contact us online by filling out a feedback form on tfw.wales/contact-us

Write to us at:

  • Customer Relations,
    Transport for Wales Rail Limited,
    3 Llys Cadwyn, Pontypridd, CF37 4TH

TfW Social Media, follow:

  • X @TfWrail
  • Instagram @TfWrail
  • Facebook @TfWrail

For information on passenger assistance, please visit tfw.wales/passenger-assistance

For delay compensation, please visit tfw.wales/delay-repay-compensation

Additional contact details can be found at tfw.wales/contact-us

  • Class 150
    • Current fleet

      • Class 150s are two carriage diesel trains

      • Year built | 1987

      • Number in fleet | 36

      • 9 of the Class 150 fleet have recently been fitted with Automated Passenger Counting (APC), which monitors the business of each service

       

      Accessibility

      ​​​Access ramp Yes 
      Assistance button Yes 
      Priority seating Yes
      Wheelchair users' space 2
      Universal Toilet 1
      Door width (mm) 825

       

      Class 150 from Transport for Wales

      Routes

      • Heart of Wales line

      • West Wales - Swansea - Cardiff

      • Llandudno - Llandudno Junction

      • Llandudno Junction - Blaenau Ffestiniog

      • Wrexham - Bidston

      • All Valleys routes and City Line

      • Maesteg - Ebbw Vale and Cheltenham

      • Crewe - Chester

      • South Wales - Manchester Piccadilly

        These are the most common routes but they are subject to change.

      What’s inside

      Bicycle space 4
      Charging sockets 3-pin and USB Yes 
      Public Address Yes
      Seats 108
      Seats - additional tip-up 6
      Seats - priority Yes
      Universal Toilet 1
      Visual Information Screens Yes
      Wheelchair users’ space 2
      Wi-Fi Yes

       

      Carriage layout

  • Class 153
    • Current fleet

      • Class 153s are single carriage diesel trains which normally operate in coupled pairs

      • Year built | 1987 - 1988

      • Number in fleet | 26

      • There are 2 types of unit in service at the moment.
        - UAT (with Universal Accessible Toilet)
        - Non-UAT (without any toilet).
        Where possible, a UAT unit will be coupled with a Non-UAT unit

       

      Accessibility

      Access ramp icon ​​​Access ramp Yes 
      Assistance button icon Assistance button Yes 
      Priority seating icon Priority seating Yes
      Wheelchair users spcae icon Wheelchair users' space (non-UAT) 1
      Wheelchair users' space (UAT) 2
      Universal toilet icon Universal Toilet (non-UAT) 0
      Universal Toilet (UAT) 1
      Door width (mm) 820
      Class 153 from Transport for Wales

      Routes

      • Heart of Wales

      • West Wales - Swansea - Cardiff - Shrewsbury - Crewe

      • Cardiff Bay Shuttles

      • Chester - Liverpool Lime St

      • Crewe - Chester

      • City Line

      • Rhymney - Cardiff

      • South Wales - Manchester Piccadilly

      These are the most common routes but they are subject to change.

      What’s inside

      Bicycle space 2
      Public Address Yes
      Seats 56
      Seats - additional tip-up 3
      Seats - priority Yes
      Universal Toilet (non-UAT) 0
      Universal Toilet (UAT) 1
      Wheelchair users' space (non-UAT) 1
      Wheelchair users' space (UAT) 2

       

      Carriage layout

       

  • Class 158
    • Current fleet

      • Class 158s are two carriage diesel trains

      • Year built | 1989 - 1992

      • Number in fleet | 24

      • Please note, Class 158s have a smaller universal accessible toilet and limited room to manoeuvre a wheelchair

       

      Accessibility

      Access ramp icon ​​​Access ramp Yes 
      Assistance button icon Assistance button Yes 
      Priority seating icon Priority seating Yes
      Wheelchair users spcae icon Wheelchair users' space 2
      Universal toilet icon Universal Toilet 1
      Door width (mm) 780
      Class 158 from Transport for Wales

      Routes

      • West Wales - Manchester

      • West Wales - Holyhead

      • Shrewsbury - Wolverhampton and Birmingham

      • Shrewsbury - Cambrian Coast Line (these are the only trains used on the Cambrian Coast Line)

      • North Wales Coast Line

      These are the most common routes but they are subject to change.

      What’s inside

      Bicycle space 2
      Catering - at seat (selected services only) Yes
      Charging sockets 3-pin and USB Yes 
      Public Address Yes
      Seats 134
      Seats - priority Yes
      Universal Toilet 1
      Toilet - not wheelchair accessible 1
      Visual Information Screens Yes
      Wheelchair users' space 2
      Wi-Fi Yes

       

      Carriage layout

       

  • Mark 4 Coach
    • Current fleet

      • Mark 4 Coaches are locomotive-hauled coaches.

      • Year built | 1989 - 1992

      • Number in fleet | 7 trains of 5 coaches

       

      Accessibility

      Access ramp icon ​​​Access ramp Yes 
      Assistance button icon Assistance button Yes 
      Priority seating icon Priority seating Yes
      Wheelchair users spcae icon Wheelchair users' space 2
      Universal toilet icon Universal Toilet 1
      Door width (mm) 800
      Mark 4 from Transport for Wales

      Routes

      • Cardiff - Holyhead

      • Swansea - Manchester Piccadilly

      These are the most common routes but they are subject to change.

      Route map of where the Mark 4 trains run on Transport for Wales

      What’s inside

      Baby changing Yes
      Bicycle space 4
      Capacity icon
      Capacity 222
      Catering - at seat (selected services only, please contact customer relations for more  details) Yes
      Charging sockets 3-pin only Yes 
      Public Address Yes
      Restaurant car icon
      Restaurant car Yes
      Seats - standard class 182
      Seats - first class 40
      Seats - priority Yes
      Universal Toilet 1
      Toilet - not wheelchair accessible 3
      Visual Information Screens Yes
      Wheelchair users' space
      standard class
      2
        Wheelchair users' space
      first class
      2
      Wi-Fi Yes

       

      Carriage layout

      Diagram of the carriage layout of a Mark 4
  • Class 230
    • Current fleet

      • Class 230s are three carriage bi-mode trains using diesel and battery.

      • Year built | 2019 - 2020

      • Number in fleet | 5

       

      Accessibility

      Access ramp icon ​​​Access ramp Yes 
      Assistance button icon Assistance button Yes 
      Priority seating icon Priority seating Yes
      Wheelchair users spcae icon Wheelchair users' space 2
      Universal toilet icon Universal Toilet 1
      Door width (mm) 800
      Class 230 from Transport for Wales

      Routes

      • Wrexham - Bidston

      These are the most common routes but they are subject to change.

      Route map of where the Class 230 trains run on Transport for Wales

      What’s inside

      Baby changing Yes
      Bicycle space No
      Catering - at seat No
      Charging sockets 3-pin and USB Yes 
      Public Address Yes
      Seats 142
      Seats priority Yes
      Universal Toilet 1
      Visual Information Screens Yes
      Wheelchair users' space 2
      Wi-Fi Yes

       

      Carriage layout

      Diagram of the carriage layout of a Class 230
  • Class 197
    • Current fleet

      • Class 197s are two and three carriage diesel trains.

      • Year built | 2020 - present

      • Year to be introduced | 2022

      • Number in fleet | 77

        • two carriages | 51

        • three carriages | 26

       

      Accessibility

      Access ramp icon ​​​Access ramp Yes 
      Assistance button icon Assistance button TBC
      Priority seating icon Priority seating Yes
      Wheelchair users spcae icon Wheelchair users' space 2
      Universal toilet icon Universal Toilet 1
      Door width (mm) 800
      Class 197 from Transport for Wales

      Routes

      • North Wales Coast Line

      • Marches line

      • South Wales Mainline

      • West Wales

      • West Midlands

      • Cambrian line

      These are the most common routes but they are subject to change.

      Route map of where the Class 197 trains run on Transport for Wales

      What’s inside

      Baby changing Yes
      Bicycle space TBC
      Catering - at seat (selected services only) Yes
      Charging sockets 3-pin and USB Yes 
      Public Address Yes
      Seats - standard class  
      two carriages 116
      three carriages 188
      three carriages with first class 158
      Seats - first class  
      three carriages with first class 16
      Seats - additional tip-up  
      two carriages 5
      three carriages 8
      Seats - priority Yes
      Universal Toilet 1
      Toilet | not wheelchair accessible  
      two carriages 0
      three carriages 1
      Visual Information Screens Yes
      Wheelchair users' space 2
      Wi-Fi Yes

       

      Carriage layout

      Class 197, two carriages

      Diagram of the carriage layout of a Class 197 2 Carriage

      Class 197, three carriages

      Diagram of the carriage layout of a Class 197 3 Carriage

      Class 197, three carriages with first class

      Diagram of the carriage layout of a Class 175 3 Carriage with first class
  • Class 231 Flirt
    • Current fleet

      • Class 231 Flirts are four carriage electric and diesel trains.

      • Year built | 2020 - present

      • Number in fleet | 11

       

      Accessibility

      Access ramp icon ​​​Access ramp Yes 
      Assistance button icon Assistance button Yes 
      Priority seating icon Priority seating Yes
      Wheelchair users spcae icon Wheelchair users' space 2
      Universal toilet icon Universal Toilet 1
      Door width (mm) 800
      Class 231 from Transport for Wales

      Routes

      • Maesteg - Ebbw Vale and Cheltenham 

      • Rhymney - Penarth
        (during 2023)

      These are the most common routes but they are subject to change.

      Route map of where the Class 231 trains run on Transport for Wales

      What’s inside

      Baby changing Yes
      Bicycle space
      Not dedicated, flexible use space
      9
      Charging sockets 3-pin and USB Yes 
      Public Address Yes
      Seats 170
      Seats - additional tip-up 34
      Seats - priority Yes
      Universal Toilet 1
      Visual Information Screens Yes
      Wheelchair users' space 2
      Wi-Fi Yes

       

      Carriage layout

      Diagram of the carriage layout of a Class 231
  • Class 756 Flirt
    • Future fleet

      • Class 756 Flirts are three and four carriage tri-mode trains using diesel, electric and battery.

      • Year built | 2020 - present

      • Year to be introduced | 2023

      • Number in fleet | 24

        • three carriages | 7

        • four carriages | 17

       

      Accessibility

      Access ramp icon ​​​Access ramp Yes 
      Assistance button icon Assistance button Yes 
      Priority seating icon Priority seating Yes
      Wheelchair users spcae icon Wheelchair users' space 2
      Universal toilet icon Universal Toilet 1
      Door width (mm) 800
      Class 756 from Transport for Wales

      Routes

      • Rhymney - Penarth

      • Vale of Glamorgan

      These are the most common routes but they are subject to change.

      Class 756 Flirt routes map

      What’s inside

      Baby changing Yes
      Bicycle space
      Not dedicated, flexible use space
       
      three carriages 6
      four carriages 9
      Charging sockets 3-pin and USB Yes 
      Public Address Yes
      Seats  
      three carriages 118
      four carriages 158
      Seats - additional tip-up  
      three carriages 24
      four carriages 32
      Seats - priority Yes
      Universal Toilet 1
      Visual Information Screens Yes
      Wheelchair users' space 2
      Wi-Fi Yes

       

      Carriage layout

      Class 756 Flirt three carriages

      Diagram of the carriage layout of a Class 756 3 Carriage

      Class 756 Flirt four carriages

      Diagram of the carriage layout of a Class 756 4 Carriage
  • Class 398 Citylink
    • Future fleet

      • Class 398 Citylinks are three carriage tram-trains using electric and battery.

      • Year built | 2020 - present

      • Year to be introduced | 2023

      • Number in fleet | 36

      • Please note that there are no toilets on board. Toilet facilities can be found at stations along the route, with a maximum of 14 minutes between stops.

       

      Accessibility

      Access ramp icon ​​​Access ramp Level boarding; however some stations require the use of an access ramp
      Assistance button icon Assistance button Yes 
      Priority seating icon Priority seating Yes
      Wheelchair users spcae icon Wheelchair users' space 2
      Universal toilet icon Universal Toilet No
      Stadler Citylink - Class 398 at test track in Valencia

      Routes

      • Treherbert / Merthyr Tydfil / Aberdare - Cardiff and Penarth

      These are the most common routes but they are subject to change.

      Route map of where the Class 398 trains run on Transport for Wales

      What’s inside

      Bicycle space
      Not dedicated, flexible use space
      6
      Charging sockets 3-pin and USB Yes 
      Public Address Yes
      Seats 96
      Seats - additional tip-up 31
      Seats - priority Yes
      Visual Information Screens Yes
      Wheelchair users' space 2
      Wi-Fi Yes

       

      Carriage layout

      Diagram of the carriage layout of a Class 398

Summary

Train Accessibility Other
Access ramp icon Assistance button icon Priority seating icon Wheelchair users spcae icon Universal toilet icon
Restaurant car icon
Class 150 Yes Yes Yes 2 1 Yes 2 No Yes Yes No No Yes Yes
Class 153 Yes Yes ** 1/2 1* ** 2 No Yes* Yes No No Yes* Yes*
Class 158 Yes Yes Yes 2 1 Yes 2 Yes Yes Yes No 1 Yes Yes
Mark 4 Yes Yes Yes 4 1 Yes 4 Yes Yes Yes Yes 3 Yes Yes
Class 230 Yes Yes Yes 2 1 Yes No No Yes Yes No No Yes Yes
Class 197 Yes TBC Yes 2 1 Yes TBC Yes Yes Yes No 0/1** Yes Yes
Class 231 Yes Yes Yes 2 1 Yes 9 No Yes Yes No No Yes Yes
Class 756 Yes Yes Yes 2 1 Yes 6/9** No Yes Yes No No Yes Yes
Class 398 Yes Yes Yes 2 No No 6 No Yes Yes No No Yes Yes

 

* Refurbished fleet only

** See full breakdown for details

 

Transport for Wales exists to drive forward the Welsh Government’s vision of a high quality, safe, integrated, affordable and accessible transport network that the people of Wales are proud of. Transport for Wales is key to delivering the Welsh Government’s key themes as set out in Prosperity for All: The National Strategy.

For Wales and its people to thrive, we need to be connected to one another, to the services we need and to open up new opportunities. Our work focuses on making these connections happen - by planning, commissioning and managing efficient transport networks and by drawing on the very best skills from across industry, government and society.

We are creating a transport network fit for the future that contributes to the long-term sustainability of Wales and those communities connected to us.

 

Metro

Reduced journey times, more services and better connections are just some of the benefits you can expect from Metro, the exciting new transport system that will transform the way we all travel Wales and the borders.

Metro will be a world-class transport network that will transform people’s lives in Wales and the borders, improving access to job, leisure and other opportunities.

Metro will also transform Wales’ economic prospects.

Work on the South Wales Metro is already underway and we’re developing options to improve and enhance the transport network in North Wales and Swansea Bay.