CHEPSTOW train station lost out on some badly needed cash after it failed to employ a ticket officer on Sunday.

An Arriva train leaving from Chepstow at 11.15am to go Cardiff was packed with people travelling to the Six Nations match between Wales and Scotland at the Millennium Stadium.

With train fares from Chepstow to Cardiff costing £5.80 and approximately 430 people on the three-carriage train, it is believed the station missed out on more than £5,000 from the journey to and from Chepstow.

It has been argued that the money could have been used to rejuvenate Chepstow's old station, which has often been criticised for its dirty appearance and lack of facilities.

Tom Evans, 52 from Chepstow who was on the train said: "I was really surprised that the ticket office at the station was closed and that no one on the train made us pay for a ticket.

"When we got on the train it was virtually empty, but there were a few people who had got on from Lydney who I noticed had bought tickets and were waiting to show them to somebody.

"By the time the train left Chepstow it was absolutely packed and you couldn't move.

Mr Evans was angry that so much money had been lost. He said: "The train station is a complete tip, and there is rubbish everywhere. It really needs to be sorted out.

"I would not have minded paying for the journey, especially if the money had gone towards the station.

"If Arriva view big match events as a free travel day then they should advertise it and run more trains, so people can take advantage of it. "However I suspect that they simply didn't bother employing anyone for that Sunday."

Emyr Williams the communications manager for Arriva Trains Wales said: "Obviously it was an exceptional day as so many people were using that service because of the match, but people should have been able to buy a ticket on the train.

"There are future plans in place to rejuvenate train stations across Wales and Chepstow is one of them."