A second virtual meeting was held on Wednesday to discuss the future and vision for Milford Haven railway station.

The meeting, which was held over Zoom, lasted two and a half hours and was attended by many individuals and organisations.

Led by Dawn Lyle from South West Wales Connected, it was only one of numerous meetings over the previous few months that the community rail partnership has conducted across south west Wales.

Dawn Lyle kept the meeting optimistic, focusing everybody's attention about how people's experiences could be improved at the station, what people like and what people would like to see there.

There were many favourable reflections on the history and heritage of the town, gems like the theatre and the museum, local independent businesses and local biodiversity.

However, concerns were shared about the railway station in its current form, with one local resident saying: "I travel a lot and I haven't seen one worse."

The words "awful" and "diabolical" were also shared during the meeting. Ms Lyle did express her knowledge of locals' frustration over the current state of the train station.

There is room for optimism however, with town pride being a focus point during the exchange of views, particularly with the upcoming summer months.

The development of the town, with the new hotel on the Waterfront, along with the future plans for a conference centre, have all been welcomed by residents.

West Wales district chair Colin Sharp said: "This year is more important than ever," talking of how 'staycations' will be extremely popular in the UK following lockdown restrictions easing.

Comparisons were made to Portugal and Saint Tropez when considering the sunny weather in Milford Haven's summer.

With the imminent popularity of the town mixed with the local development, stress was put onto the development of the railway station.

Mr Sharp said: "This is a beautiful town, but it does sometimes feel, when you come in by train, that you're coming to the end of the world," to which participants in the meeting could only agree.

"People visiting this summer will want to see a train station, even if it's a temporary building, better than its current form."

Dayle Giddy from Milford Youth Matters stressed the importance of the project to the charity and to the youth involved: "Young people do want to be a part of the community and want to get involved in these opportunities."

Young pupils from Milford Haven Comprehensive have already been involved, partaking in three sessions building visions of the future of Milford Haven Train Station through Minecraft.

Meanwhile, Pembrokeshire County Council have been working with Atkins, an engineering consultancy, to develop plans for the longer term future of the station.

Ceri Rees from the county council mentioned improving accessibility at the station, along with introducing a coach pick-up point, separating the taxis from the general parking areas and introducing charging points for electric cars in the future.

Building work could begin in as little as 18 months, with the next step being a full business case of the project and a detailed design of the future of the station.

The final part of the meeting was further kept optimistic by discussing what locals would like to see at the train station, with many ideas shared.

A temporary ticket office with a seating area, a vending machine and a stand for leaflets were only a few of the ideas given out and considered.

Dawn Lyle ended the meeting by thanking all attendees, specifically Pembrokeshire County Council, Transport for Wales and George Lance from Atkins.

Mr Lance spent time in the meeting going through a detailed engineered proposal for the future of the station, answering questions and general feedback from locals.

A future meeting will take place in the coming months.