Porthcawl road train operator revealed

Bridgend County Borough Council has confirmed that the charity and social enterprise, Emmaus South Wales, has been chosen as the operator for Porthcawl’s all-new road train attraction.

Designed to operate between Sandy Bay and Rest Bay and connect the town centre with the seafront, the seasonal service will take in key stops such as Coney Pleasure Beach, Porthcawl harbour, the town centre, the Grand Pavilion and the Rest Bay Watersports Centre.

The road train will have three carriages, one of which will be wheelchair accessible, and Emmaus will establish a ticket office and waiting area at its store on New Road, Porthcawl which is near the start of the road train’s route.

The new Porthcawl road train is being introduced using £11,453 which has been secured from Welsh Government as part of the Visit Wales Tourist Attractor Destinations scheme. As long as pandemic conditions allow, Emmaus plans to have the new road train up and running this summer.

I’m delighted that an operator has been chosen for this attraction, which will deliver so many benefits for Porthcawl.

Emmaus South Wales have a track record of supporting people to improve their circumstances, find new accommodation, gain new skills and explore opportunities for fresh employment. As well as having strong links with the area, they can offer their considerable experience across a broad range of business operations, and can draw on the resources of the wider Emmaus UK community.

I have every confidence that they will make the new Porthcawl road train a huge success, and that it is sure to be a hit with residents, visitors and tourists alike.

Councillor Charles Smith, Cabinet Member for Education and Regeneration

Jemma Wray, Chief Executive of Emmaus South Wales, said: “We are thrilled to be announced as the new operator for Porthcawl’s road train.

“Expanding our social enterprise in this distinctive and innovative way will give the people we support even more opportunities to learn new skills, which is something we are very excited about.

“We’re delighted to have the opportunity to contribute towards Porthcawl’s tourism economy and looking forward to welcoming visitors and locals on board soon.”

Emmaus will soon be looking to recruit two posts for the land train operation – more details will be released about these soon.

The council has previously used the Tourism Attractor Destination programme to successfully deliver the £1.5m Watersports Centre at Rest Bay, refurbish the kiosk building at Porthcawl Marina, and launch a Visit Bridgend website, which includes a section about Porthcawl, to showcase the county borough to residents and visitors.