As the railways went into decline in the 1950s the area was particularly badly hit by closures. The passenger service to Usk and Monmouth was withdrawn in 1955 and the local branch line from Newport to Blaenavon was closed in April 1962. The Beeching Axe put paid to the service to Neath in June 1964 leaving Pontypool Road, as a main-line station, the only one remaining in the area. By the late 1970s the station was down to just 14 passenger trains a day on weekdays. Over the years the situation improved and by 2019 the station saw more than twice that number, but almost half of the passenger trains on the line go through without stopping.