Construction has started on the section of the Rhondda Fach Active Travel Route between Ferndale and Tylorstown. This represents the final main section of the 10km walking and cycling route to be built.
Rhondda Cynon Taf Council said it is making good progress towards delivering the investment for communities right across the Rhondda Fach. The new shared pathway will run from Maerdy through to Tylorstown, and is being delivered in five phases of work. Phases one, two, four and five represent the primary active travel route, while phase three will provide a key local link off it.
Phase four through Ferndale was recently opened to the public at the start of June 2025, following phases one and two through Maerdy in 2023 and 2024.
The final section of the route is an upgraded 2.8km section of shared path between Ferndale and Tylorstown. It will extend from the southernmost point of phase four, between Rhondda Fach Leisure Centre (Ferndale) and the Stanleytown overbridge – connecting to the Porth Relief Road community route at its southern end. This final phase of work will follow the route of the old railway line, and create links to the sports centre and Tylorstown Surgery.
The route is relatively flat, with virtually all existing surfaces comprising of gravel, stone and/or bare ground – which will be upgraded with resurfacing. Phase five also comprises necessary work to two former railway bridges – to retain the structures’ abutments and piers, while replacing the bridge decks.
During the work, the current pathway which will be upgraded in phase five will close to the public. The southernmost section of phase four, starting at a point near the new pump track and Station Road, is also closed.
Councillor Andrew Morgan OBE, leader of Rhondda Cynon Taf Council and Cabinet Member for Infrastructure and Investment, said: “Welsh Government continues to support the council with significant investment each year via its Active Travel Fund, with the shared goal of improving and creating new walking and cycling routes for our communities. In 2025/26, more than £1m is secured to progress design work for new active travel routes between Talbot Green and Llanharan, and Treorchy and Treherbert, along with the development of several more schemes that have been agreed in principle.
“In addition, Welsh Government has also provided full funding for the delivery of phase five of the Rhondda Fach Active Travel Route, and I’m pleased that construction work is now ready to start from June 23. It follows a public consultation last summer and the securing of planning permission in January 2025. Phase four of the main route, through Ferndale, was also opened at the start of June 2025, with only minor finishing works currently ongoing.
“Phase five from Ferndale to Tylorstown represents the final section of the main route across the Rhondda Fach, which spans 10km in total. This is a major investment for local communities, as we encourage more people to walk and cycle parts of their everyday journeys. This will improve their health and well-being, and have a knock-on effect of reducing the number of vehicles on our roads, improving traffic congestion, and protecting the environment.”
