£200m taxpayer-funded trains sit barely used for three years

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.

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.