Forking out £5.50 everyday to get home seems extreme but it is a reality hundreds of Welsh people who work across the Severn estuary face on a daily basis.
Since 1966 the Severn Bridge has allowed easy passage between Wales and England and as a result it has connected Wales with the rest of the UK, but this has come with a high price tag for those who use the bridge on a regular basis. In November 2009 an e-petition was started in an attempt to gain support for a campaign to get tolls on the Severn Crossing reduced.

More than 100 commuters an hour could travel from Penarth to Cardiff by boat as a Cardiff company takes the first step towards having regular water bus services.

At 25 minutes, the journeys on a fleet of five £90,000 boats, which would run every 15 minutes between around 7am and 7pm and stop at Cardiff Central station and Bute Park, could be quicker than commuting by car.

Yet company owners have criticised the Cardiff Council-controlled Cardiff Harbour Authority, saying the boats could go twice as fast if speed restrictions on the River Taff were lifted.

WHEN most people hear the words unlicensed boxing they think of illegal, underground, bare-knuckle bouts like those seen in Snatch or Fight Club.

But on Saturday, 1000 fight fans will descend on the Cardiff City Stadium for the ground’s first boxing event. Like professional boxing, unlicensed boxing has all the same regulations; there is a referee, a round system, gloves and Queensbury rules, the only difference is that it is not covered by the British Boxing Board of Control.

The traditional day of rest could be a thing of the past for a group of Cardiff residents, following an application by their local supermarket to receive deliveries on Sundays.

Lidl in Maindy Road has applied to Cardiff Council to increase its deliveries from six days a week to seven. This could see articulated lorries turning up to the site, which is on a residential road, from eight in the morning until 10pm.

ENVIRONMENTALISTS big and small gathered in Cardiff yesterday to watch a film which was funded by donations from more than 300 people. Film director Franny Armstrong, famous for her film McLibel about a couple who were sued by McDonalds, “crowd-funded” campaign movie The Age of Stupid by raising more than £700,000 from investors. Yesterday environment experts and members of the public gathered at the Channel View Centre in Jim Driscoll Way, Grangetown for the free screening.

A CARDIFF Assembly Member hit out today at suggestions all primary school children should receive free school meals, saying the scheme would be unaffordable for Wales. Jenny Randerson AM slammed a study by trade union GMB which suggested trials of free school meals for all primary school pupils in two English councils should be extended across the UK.

The announcement of 250 jobs created in Cardiff by Barclaycard today has been hailed a “big vote of confidence for Wales” by Welsh Assembly Government’s First Minister Carwyn Jones.

Barclaycard confirmed it will move work from Barclays Partner Finance in Glasgow in the summer, following months of consultations. The jobs will be in the same building as First Plus, another loans company, based in Pontprennau, to the north east of the capital. Roles will include management trainees and customer loan advisers.

First Minister Jones said: “I welcome the announcement by Barclays of …

The tapping of laptop keys is a sound which has come to characterise cafés such as Starbucks, as freelance workers and entrepreneurs settle themselves in these spaces as an alternative to forking out high prices for their own offices. But accountant Mark Hooper is turning this culture on its head.
Mr Hooper has brought the growing craze of co-working, which has become massive in America, to Cardiff as an alternative to working alone in cafés.
Indycube is a concept Mr Hooper has been developing for the past five years, but the space itself has been situated in the ITV media centre at Culverhouse Cross, Cardiff, for the past six months.

Dusty old computers, comedic mouse mats, wilting avocado plants and unnecessarily small fridge facilities. Pop these into ordered rows in an overtly bland room with a heavy-duty wool carpet, and the collective conversational spark of interesting, capable adults will be reduced down to a pile of glimmering embers.
We’ve all been there. The banal office chat. I don’t know why it happens. I wish I did.
There are a few social norms I suppose are not applicable in the office. If you start a conversation at a party and the person you …

A CARDIFF shop owner’s new alcohol delivery service has drawn criticism from charities and local residents.
Arjuna Gunesekera, 23, will launch the Bargain Booze delivery service on Friday with the aim of selling alcohol in the city’s Cathays area.
The scheme, which is the first Bargain Booze has ever run, will target central Cardiff’s large student population and deliver cheap alcohol as late as 4am. This has led to criticism from safe drinking campaigners.
Mr Gunesekera owns Bargain Booze in Splott Road, but will move his business to Cathays to target its large …

St Patrick’s Day celebrations began early in Cardiff city centre as world champion Irish dancers took to the streets with staff from O’Neill’s pub to raise money for local Welsh charity LATCH.
Cardiff is one of four cities taking part in the national “Join the Jig” campaign, which is one of many fundraising activities taking place across the 62 O’Neill’s pubs in the UK in the run up to St Patrick’s Day on Wednesday.

Two Cardiff men are embarking on a new venture to connect local businesses in Cardiff and give something back to local charities through a new online business directory with a twist.
Cardiff Business Online will launch at the end of March and is the first part of a three-stage-plan to help connect Cardiff-based businesses. The online directory will offer businesses the opportunity to place their profile online for just £10 a month and advertise to consumers in a new way through the use of Twitter.

12:08:34 PM: Good afternoon and welcome from me Alain Tolhurst,your host for today’s LV Cup semi-final clash between the Cardiff Blues and Gloucester
12:09:57 PM: It’s a repeat of last years final at the City Stadium where Nicky Robinson returns to Cardiff for the first time
12:10:47 PM: Also Andy Powell starts for the first time since Buggy-gate as the Cardiff squad is down to it’s bare bones with injuries and intl duty
12:11:44 PM: 5 minutes to kick off there are plenty of cherry and whites in here looking like a better …

Unstaffed tanning salons could soon be outlawed after a proposal by Cardiff North MP Julie Morgan today moved a step closer to becoming law.

The Sunbeds (Regulation) Bill would also make it illegal for people under the age of 18 to use sunbeds, with a fine of up to £20,000 for any salons caught breaking the law.

Cardiff councillors charged the taxpayer over £30 every day in travel expenses during the last financial year.

Forty per cent of the bill came from taxi charges after councillors argued the public transport in the city, including the council-owned Cardiff Bus, was not good enough.

City life can be stressful and exhausting. The daily nine to five work routine can wear anyone out, so if life’s pressures are getting too much, we have picked out two Welsh holiday retreats for you to get out of Cardiff and away from it all.

Heartspring (www.heartspring.co.uk) retreat in Llansteffan, Carmarthen, is in the heart of the Welsh countryside and set among acres of stunning coastal scenery. It provides nurturing mini-breaks to escape the hustle and bustle of urban life and has everything you could possibly want to reconnect with your inner self and relax.

A senior Cardiff councillor spoke in support today of a steep pay cut proposed for Cardiff council’s highest-earning members. Plaid Cymru executive member for transport Delme Bowen said he supported cutting cabinet members’ maximum allowances by 9.1 per cent, as recommended in yesterday’s annual report by the Independent Remuneration Panel for Wales.

Musing on “How we came to live in unforgiving despair,” the incomparable stylings of Dan le Sac and Scroobius Pip effortlessly produce the thought-provoking social commentary many have failed to elucidate.

A decade-old empty building on a housing estate was demolished on the request of Cardiff Council this week, despite protests from its owner and a petition with more than 150 signatures from nearby residents to save it.

Cardiff Council could be in line for a major shake up following draft proposals to redraw ward boundaries, in a move which one councillor labelled “gerrymandering”.

A newly-married couple who were threatened with a knife when their shop was burgled last week are moving back to India because they are too frightened to stay in Cardiff.

Deep in the heart of the South Wales countryside, a handful of men gather once a month at what they like to call the headquarters of the Welsh space agency. But this secret location is not an underground bunker, or a darkened room filled with maps. It is the Rose Inn in Redwick. This quiet village pub is home to the country’s top rocketeers.

A Cardiff Bay sports centre has had to put up new fencing after a spate of break-ins resulted in more than £12,000 worth of equipment being stolen, including a tandem bike. The Cardiff Bay Water Activity Centre in Jim Driscoll Way, Grangetown, has been broken into three times in the last month. Five Raleigh mountain bikes and four black Ridgeback NX3s worth £300 each and a silver tandem bike worth between £500 and £600 were stolen in the early hours of March 1.

Twenty-eight illicit mobile phones and thirty SIM cards were seized from patients in Cardiff Prison in the last year, according to figures released by the Ministry of Justice.

Nearly one in six first class letters failed to arrive on time in Cardiff due to strike action last year, according to figures by Royal Mail. Only 84.3 per cent of first class letters arrived in Cardiff, the valleys and the Vale of Glamorgan the day after they were posted between September 7 and December 6, below the national target of 93 per cent.

A wheelchair basketball club in Cardiff is looking for new members. Cardiff Celts, who have two teams in the second and fourth divisions of the GB National League, are playing their next match on March 27 against the Essex Outlaws at the Eastern Leisure Centre, Llanrumney Avenue, and want to find new recruits.

A tax consultant from Cardiff has written a novel in a bid to become an independent MP. Alun Mathias, 49, distributed 1,200 free copies of his book Vicky and the Pit to homes in Cathays at a personal cost of nearly £3,000.

Cardiff Devils head into the biggest game of their season tonight riding on a wave of confidence after their late comeback against Newcastle Vipers on the weekend.

The Devils play Nottingham Panthers in the second leg of the Challenge Cup final and they must battle back from two goals down, after a 4-2 first leg defeat.

But they are full of confidence after beating the Vipers 7-4 on Sunday, despite being 3-0 behind eith 21 minutes to play.

THE FIGHT over the future of a Cardiff green space will continue tonight at a potentially-fractious public meeting.
The Rumney Recreation Ground has been the subject of much vitriol over the past two years, with battle lines being drawn between the community and the council.
The council want to build a new school at the site, knocking down Rumney and Llanrumney high schools in the process, while the residents of the area have been battling to oppose the plans.
Chairman of the Rumney Recreation & Eastern Leisure Centre (REEL) Action Group has accused …

A HISTORIC Cardiff pub is to be demolished to make way for a Tesco, an industry insider has revealed.
The Carpenters Arms, in Newport Road, Llanrumney, was originally built in 1872 as a coach house and has been a pub since the 1960s.
Since being shut down more than a year ago it has been the subject of intense speculation among residents.
Although the company handling the sale, Horace John, Forse & Co, have only dealt with the buyer’s representative, a sales negotiator at a nation-wide estate agent has confirmed Tesco have finalised …

Hidden between the close-knit terraced roofs of inner-city Cardiff are the white domes of a cultural gem.

Prayers at the Shree Swaminarayan temple in Merches Place, Grangetown, begin at sunrise just after 7am. Step into the long prayer room, a former nightclub floor, and you hear the jangling of bells and musical chanting.

The temple is the third biggest for the Swaminarayan (corr) Hindu denomination in Britain, after two in London, and the only one of its kind in Wales.

Devils fight back to defeat Vipers in thrilling final period – See Full Match Report here
6:02:56 PM: Cardiff Devils v. Newcastle Vipers live blog. Your commentators tonight are Tom Mooney and David Edward. http://myloc.me/4y6C6
6:08:16 PM: Decent crowd in at the Tent, Devils desperatly need some momentum ahead of Tuesday’s cc final 2nd leg http://myloc.me/4y6Yq
6:10:31 PM: Domish gets two mins for delaying. Quiet start. http://myloc.me/4y77T
6:15:15 PM: Goal! Kralj. Squeezes it past Lyle. Assists by Tinsley and Horde. 1-0 VIPERS http://myloc.me/4y7r2
6:18:05 PM: Latiluppe and Towe go close for Devils but Robinson stands …

3:48:23 PM: Good afternoon from the Cardiff City Stadium from me Alain Tolhurst,your host for today’s Cardiff Blues vs Leinster game,15mins til kick off
3:49:42 PM: Stadium bathed in sunshine for once as the teams warm-up on the field,plenty of pink in the stands for Ladies Day
3:56:06 PM: Cardiff Blues starting XV: Blair/James/Laulau/Shanklin/Czekaj/Sweeney/Cooper/Rush/Warburton/Molitika/Tito/Morgan/Powell/Thomas/Filise
3:56:37 PM: Andy Powell on bench for Blues – 3mins to KO
3:59:51 PM: Blues resplendent in Pink away kit for ladies day at Cardiff City Stadium,Leinster to kick off
4:02:26 PM: Bright start from the Blues or pinks as I …

Jamie Hayes enjoyed some extra game-time during last week’s clash with the Sheffield Steelers and the Devils youngster has set his sights on progressing further in the Welsh Capital.

“It’s been really good getting some time on the ice and I’m really enjoying it,” said Hayes.

The 19-year-old has come through the ranks at the Devils and is relishing the opportunity he has been given in his first full season as a professional.

Children from schools across Cardiff visited their local libraries this week to celebrate World Book Day.

And these year five pupils from St Paul’s Church in Wales Primary School, Grangetown, were one of 19 groups set loose in Grangetown Library, Havelock Place.

Just days after Llandough Hospital was subjected to a damning report from the Healthcare Inspectorate Wales (HIW), diasbled Penarth councillor Alun Roberts has hit out at transport links to the hospital.

Entering the large, over-polished restaurant in Cardiff’s Brewery Quarter, the impossibly white linen and delicate floral displays might make you think you had entered an art gallery instead of an eatery.

Thai Edge is the epitome of contemporary oriental design. It looks flawless, and even if the atmosphere is slightly pretentious, the food lives up to the high price tag.

When given the challenge to go belly dancing I couldn’t help but scoff a little. This was going to be a piece of cake. Whenever I have seen belly dancing in restaurants or on holiday I have always thought how easy it looked. Surely it is just a case of shaking your hips, waving your arms above your head and showing your belly a bit. Oh, how wrong I was.

After a second straight defeat, the Cardiff Devils will be looking for a return to the form they showed before the Challenge Cup final going into a double-header this weekend.
Cardiff-born youngster Ben Davies was man of the match for the Devils’ 5-4 defeat to Sheffield Steelers in the Elite League on Wednesday, a game in which player-coach Gerad Adams labelled his side’s defence “atrocious”.
The 19-year-old forward was handed more ice time as Adams appeared to ring the changes, and he was pleased with his own performance.
He said: “I think I …

The platform for Asian music in Wales has been put under threat by the proposed axing of the Asian Network by the BBC director-general, Mark Thompson, this week.
The station, which has come under severe criticism recently for falling listener numbers, plays a vital role in the promotion of Asian music across Wales but without its powerful backing, Welsh Asian music will find it difficult to reach the mainstream audience.

If you have only ever thought of Lebanese food in the context of strip-lit, sticky-floored kebab shops, the warm and welcoming Mina Restaurant and Cafe Bar will make you think again. Houmous and falafel are familiar names, but Mina, which has been running in the heart of Cathays since 1990, goes far beyond those to produce a huge range of dishes from this often-overlooked region.
For a Tuesday night, it was comfortably busy, with a broader range of customers than its student-ville location might suggest. Red-painted walls and glowing candles helped …

ALTHOUGH pop’s newest superstar, Lady Gaga, may have stunned the Cardiff International Arena on Wednesday night, it seems she is still not immune from pre-performance jitters.
According to Alphabeat, who are supporting Gaga on her tour, the singer still gets very nervous before big shows.
This will carry a certain irony for those familiar with Lady Gaga’s penchant for relishing media spotlight — as detailed in songs such as Poker Face and Paparazzi.
Alphabeat singer, Anders SG, said: “We have seen her a few times on this tour, she was really nice. She …

THE FAMILY of the Cardiff woman who was found dead earlier this week have paid tribute to her, saying she “still had a lot to give.”
Fifty two-year-old Karen Welsh was found in her home in Lowfield Drive, Thornhill, on Tuesday after police forced entry.
She had fatal injuries and her death has prompted a police murder investigation.
The family, paying tribute to Mrs Welsh, said: “We’re a small family who have suffered a big loss.
“She was a wonderful, career-driven woman who gave a lot and still had a lot …

CARDIFF Council’s Labour leader said he will call for a commemoration of former leader of the Labour Party Michael Foot, who died this week.
Councillor Ralph Cook said there was frenetic activity in the Labour office the day Mr Foot died, but he was unsure if there were any plans for a formal tribute as of yet.
“I was fortunate enough to meet Michael Foot quite by accident about ten years ago, just before I became a Councillor.
“It was at Newport Train Station and, even though the person I was with didn’t …

Danish pop outfit Alphabeat have been filling their diaries of late, with any available slot seeming like an affront to their current work ethic.
This said, the group’s vocal duo, Stine Bramsen and Anders SG, seemed surprisingly relaxed as they sat in a dingy office above Cardiff’s HMV this week.
Surprising, that is, because their second album, The Beat Is…, was released on Monday, mid-way through their UK tour with chart impresario Lady Gaga, leaving them just enough time to squeeze in a spate of in-store performances around the country.
But this visit …

Cardiff Devils coach Gerad Adams branded his team’s defence as “atrocious” after last night’s 5-4 Elite League defeat to Sheffield Steelers.

Devils were ahead four times at the Cardiff Bay Arena through Max Birbraer, Mark Smith, Ryan Finnerty and Tylor Michel. But they threw away their lead late in the third period as Sheffield scored two power play goals through Jeff Legue and Joey Talbot to seal the win.

The defeat leaves the Devils in desperate need of building some momentum in the weekend’s games with Coventry Blaze and Newcastle Vipers, ahead of their Challenge Cup final second leg against Nottingham Panthers on Tuesday.

7:15:21 PM: Welcome to tonight’s live blog of Cardiff Devils v Sheffield Steelers. As usual you’re commentators are Tom Mooney and Scott D’Arcy.
7:17:14 PM: Devils are looking to bounce back after the disappointment of losing their Challenge Cup final first leg on Sunday.
7:20:55 PM: Some traffic in Grangetown means we’re not quite at the ground yet. But we’ll hopefully be there by face off!
7:35:28 PM: We’re in just in time to catch the final verse of the national anthem. And Devils start throwing their weight around. Jarvis in the …

On the face of things, physical violence towards a team-mate should be at least on a par with putting a colleague through emotional turmoil.

So why is Craig Bellamy being hailed as a paragon of virtue for vilifying John Terry a mere three years after attacking John Arne Riise with a golf club?

A TEACHER who donned traditional Welsh dress to celebrate St David’s Day and tried to write a message of peace in chalk on the Senedd steps was moved on by security guards.

The owner of a popular Cardiff shop has announced it will close down to go online-only.
Irene Parow, of Rich and Rare on Cowbridge Road East, said she will continue to run the business through the internet after 13 successful years in Canton’s main shopping street.
The shop, which specialises in holy communion dresses and christening gowns, attracts customers from all over the world and holds regular fashion shows and exhibitions.
Ms Parow, 58, said the shop will probably close its doors at the end of May and operate solely through its website.
She …