| Gabalfa | |
|---|---|
 St Marks Church, Gabalfa | |
  Gabalfa Location withinCardiff | |
| Population | 8,790 (2011)[1] |
| Principal area | |
| Preserved county | |
| Country | Wales |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | CARDIFF |
| Postcode district | CF14 |
| Dialling code | +44-29 |
| Police | South Wales |
| Fire | South Wales |
| Ambulance | Welsh |
| UK Parliament | |
| Senedd Cymru – Welsh Parliament | |
51°30′00″N3°12′14″W / 51.500°N 3.204°W /51.500; -3.204  Show map of the community Show map of the electoral ward | |
Gabalfa (English:/ɡəˈbælvə/,Welsh pronunciation:[ɡaˈbalva]) is a district andcommunity in the north of the city ofCardiff, capital ofWales. It is characterised by a four-laneflyover road at the Gabalfa Interchange, where theA48 road meets theA470 road (North Road) which leads from Cardiff to northern Wales, and theA469 road (Caerphilly Road).
The name is derived from theWelshCeubalfa, literally translated as 'place of the boat'. It was formerly the site of a ferry crossing across theRiver Taff, upon which a school is now built.[2] The area was first heavily developed in the 1880s, with most of the characteristicterraced housing originating from the next 30 years of construction.[3]
The area around St. Joseph's Church near toCompanies House is known as 'the Colonies' due to a number of streets named after former British colonies, including Australia Road and Newfoundland Road.
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Gabalfa has three primary schools, with a combined attendance of more than 720:
Gabalfa Primary School is not within modern Gabalfa but in neighbouringLlandaff North.
Gabalfa has one comprehensive school, Cathays High School,[8] with around 900 students[9] (mainly from outside Gabalfa).
Gabalfa has a high student population. There are severalhalls of residence forCardiff University in the area, housing about 3,100 students, some 10% of the student body.[10][11][12][13] Liberty House[14] serves mainly medical and nursing students at the nearlyUniversity Hospital of Wales. In addition, many students live in privately rented accommodation in the area.
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Churches in Gabalfa include St Mark's on North Road (Church in Wales),[15]St Joseph's on New Zealand Road (Roman Catholic),[16] and the All Nations Church on Eastern Avenue (Ministries Without Borders, co-located with theAll Nations Centre).
Theelectoral ward of Gabalfa lies within the parliamentary constituency ofCardiff North, which has been represented since 2017 byWelsh Labour MPAnna McMorrin. In theSenedd, Cardiff North is represented by Welsh Labour MSJulie Morgan.
There is nocommunity council for the area.
Gabalfa was served by two Cardiff councillors: Ed Bridges (Liberal Democrat), elected in 2004, and Gareth Holden, elected in 2012. Holden was elected as a Liberal Democrat but resigned from the party in 2013.[17] He lost to a Liberal Democrat candidate in the May 2017 election. The ward is currently served by Rhys Taylor and Ashley Wood (2019).
Gabalfa is bounded byBirchgrove andHeath to the north,Cathays andMaindy to the south, andLlandaff North to the northwest.
The area is known for the Gabalfa Interchange (or Gabalfa flyover), where theA48 Eastern Avenue,A470 North Road, andA469 Whitchurch Road (south)/Caerphilly Road (north) meet. The interchange is known for its suicides and suicide attempts,[18][19] although efforts have been made to improve this, with signs to suicide prevention charities now clearly visible on the pedestrian bridge over Eastern Avenue.
Cardiff Bus' service 35 bus circles the area before heading toCardiff Bay viaCathays andCentral station. Services 1/2Bay Circle run along Western Avenue towardsHeath orLlandaff. Additionally, the following services stop at the Gabalfa Interchange:[20]
There are no railway stations located within Gabalfa, although anew railway station serving the ward was proposed by the County Council in 2000.[21] The nearest railway stations areHeath Low Level andHeath High Level to the north-west,Cathays to the south andLlandaf to the north-east.
TheTaff Trail, a long-distance footpath and cycle route that runs along theRiver Taff, is connected to Gabalfa by Llys Tal-y-Bont Road.
In 2023, a new cycle path was completed along Allensbank Road on the edge of Gabalfa, as part of Cardiff's Cycleway 1.[22][23] To promote cycling and improve safety, in recent years councillors and residents have campaigned with some success for traffic calming measures, such as Gabalfa becoming a 20 miles per hour (32 km/h) zone, raised crossings being installed,[24][25] and curbs being narrowed.
Gabalfa is within a 30-minute walk or a 10-minute cycle of the city centre.[citation needed]
