St Edeyrn's Village

Where?

Well, there is Llanedeyrn which was once a tiny village to the northwest of Cardiff.

The 1930s map shows a church ...

... and, next to the church, the pub.

Many pubs owe their existence to the church. Worshippers who had trudged for miles across the fields would need stoking up after mattins or communion. They might even need a bit of up-stoking before the service, if the incumbent were renowned for his lengthy sermons! But the old Llanedeyrn village is now on a cul de sac back lane - so much has changed.

Where once the lane ran through, eventually, to Cardiff there is now a gate and a footpath ...

... and beyond that a mega junction on the re-routed A48, one of Cardiff's links to the M4.

Round the back of the church is a decidedly unattractive footway under the A48 to preserve something of the old road route.

(Editorial note : it might be the wrong subway, but you get the idea!)

But the village of Llanedeyrn (Llan = church) is not St Edeyrn's village. This is St Edeyrn's Village.

It splurges from the A48 (bottom) and the church to the M4 (top) and is bordered by the A4232 link road on the west and the Rhymney river and what looks like an extensive park on the right. The broad structure of the village has been around for a year or so as it registers on Google Earth.

The white-roofed blocks are those of St Edeyrn's main corner shop a k a Asda ...

... and its associated and joyous (?) retail park. At ASDA, cunningly hidden in the trees, you would find Cardiff Bus routes 57 and 58 (every 7/8 minutes) ...

... and competitive C1 (every 15 minutes) from Adventure Travel.

Sadly, there appears to be no quick way from "The Village" across the A4232 to the Retail Park and ASDA - so it's quite a long walk round.

But St Edeyrn's has its own bus service - the X59 ..,

... and that runs via ASDA to and from St Edeyrns. Or Does it?

This is the Cardiff Bus network map for the area ...

... and this is the PDF map that accompanies the timetables as shown in extract above.

The text note in PINK suggests that the X59 ...

... will get you from The Village to ASDA but not back, when you are carrying your shopping. Likewise Waitrose and Lidl.  This version doesn't have a loop at "The Village", but the bus just trundles up and down Heol Booths.

So, does it NOW go round the loop ...

... and if it does do a clockwise loop, why is the bus layby on Church Road ...

... for an anti-clockwise trajectory?

Some buses on Monday to Friday serve Cardiff Gate busines park ...

... but it doesn't appear on the map with the X59 timetable.

Interestingly, back in August 2021, a press report was excited that some "revised" X59 buses now ran to Cardiff gate .

The X59 service is also being extended to Cardiff Gate Business Park Monday to Friday via St Edeyrns, offering a direct service to the business park for St Edeyrns residents.

Except that the buses to Cardiff Gate do NOT run via St Ederyn's! Never believe what the press says about public transport!

Part of this confusion might well be caused if parts of the new development were not accessible by bus when the service started.

Whatever. The debate is purely academic now as everything changes in January. Why? The money (from the developers?) has run out!

The current X59 was introduced as part of the development of St. Edeyrns Village.  This service also helped maintain the service between Cardiff East P&R and the city centre and the weekday extension to certain journeys to Cardiff Gate Business Park.  The funding for this service ceases from January 2023. Regrettably, we are unable to continue to operate the service in its current form without this funding.  The level of regular usage and revenue generated across all of the route isn’t sufficient enough to continue with the current timetable.  

We will introduce a partial replacement for services between St. Edeyrns and the city centre, however, the Park & Ride service will cease along with the weekday extension of certain journeys to Cardiff Gate Business Park.  

There will be a new hourly 59 service from St. Edeyrns to the city centre (Churchill Way) throughout the week.  Additionally, weekdays, 2 morning journeys on route 57 will also start from St. Edeyrns.  

Here are the two service 57 journeys ...

... and the hourly 59 running seven days a week with no mention at all of ASDA.

Whilst the presentation of the old X59 is less than perfect, you would hope locals can unravel it. If they cannot, that may explain a poor take-up.

According to correspondent Andrew, who keeps fbb informed of Cardiff developments, people in St Edeyrns are already well aware of the change and "talking about it" - presumably not very favourably!

So several chocolate peanuts to Cardiff Bus for keeping their passengers informed of what they are doing and more importantly, why.

And who was St Edeyrn anyway?

Wikipedia is less than overflowing with Information.

Saint Edeyrn (c. 6th century) was a pre-congregational saint of Wales, related to Vortigern and the royal house of Powys and the brother of Saint Aerdeyrn and Elldeyrn.[ Edeyrn is the patron saint of Lannédern in France and Llanedeyrn in Wales, where he founded a monastery of over 300 people.

Legend holds he was a companion of King Arthur, before moving to France where he became a Hermit.Being from the family of Vortigen, however, would make a relationship with King Arthur unlikely.

He is remembered in churches across Wales and Brittany including Monmouth and Llanedeyrn near Cardiff in Wales and Lannédern in Brittany France. He is often depicted riding a deer and his feast day is 6 January.

And here he is, riding his stag at Lannedern in Brittany!

Wikipedia doesn't have anything to say about Lannedern, either.

And "The Village" now has a shop, viz a branch of Budgens.

Other shops are awaiting the eager traders to offer their wares ...

... and in the distance we can see an X59 looping clockwise and soon to pass the ant-clockwise bus layby.

Hey ho! Well done planners.

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 Advent Calendar Day 9 

 I nspiring  I nstitution

You won't find many ministers preaching from Chapters 21 to 40 of Exodus or even the whole of the book of Leviticus.  They are packed with Old Testament rules, regulations and religious practices. 

The centre of life as the Israelites (descendants of Israel a k a Jacob) trudged incompetently and wearily from slavery in Egypt to the Promised Land was the "Tabernacle". The word simply means tent, small dwelling or, sometimes, the ancient equivalent of the village pub!

This portable temple was set up plumb in the centre of the camp with each tribe allocated space round about. It was the centre of all the services needed by a nomadic people. The Tabernacle gave them ...

Medical care

Social care

Dietary advice

Spiritual Care

But its main purpose was to provide a means of fulfilling those ten commandments.

It is easy to say sorry; it is easy to say thank you but a bit harder to make the words really genuine and heartfelt. To say sorry to God (to repent of your sin) you gave something of yours back to Him. To say thank you (e.g. for the harvest) to give some of the produce back to Him.

Today's people shrink from animal sacrifice but it was a practical system of registering your sorrow or thanks because it was costly for you! You were making a genuine sacrifice.

Nowadays some people give up chocolate for Lent!!!!

The good news for those who cringe at killing animals for religious purposes is that it is no longer needed. Jesus sacrifice on the cross effectively does the job for us.

Which is why Jesus should be the centre of CHRISTmas and not just a sideshow.

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 Next Variety blog : Saturday 10th December