The National Express Cardiff to Birmingham route will no longer stop in Monmouth.

A spokesman for National Express told the Beacon: "Unfortunately, due to a long-term decline in passenger numbers, the 343 service will no longer call at Monmouth as of 3rd June 2019.

"As with any need to make changes, we have not taken this decision lightly but it is simply not commercially viable for us to keep running to this stop.

"Although there are no immediate plans to reinstate the service, we will keep this decision under review."

Monmouth was the 10.25am stop on the Cardiff to Birmingham route which included stops at Newport, Ross-on-Wye, Worcester-Warndon and Birmingham and the return journey would bring passengers back to Monmouth for 7.05pm or on to Newport Kingsway, Cathay’s Park University and Cardiff Sophia Gardens for 8.10pm.

David Cummings, Chairman of Monmouth and District Chamber of Commerce said it was regrettable that National Express have chosen to take away this facility for the residents of the town at a time when environmental issues and the necessity for increased use of public transport are so important .

"The chamber have lobbied National Express strongly in the past to expand this service to compensate for our lack of a train station and get all eight coaches a day passing Monmouth to stop. We need long distance public transport for our residents and visitors to use. This seems to be case of a badly promoted service and one where, if there was greater choice of times, it might have been better used. Let us hope that with effective lobbying we can in time get 343 service back where all coaches passing Monmouth stop in town. "