[3] The Port Talbot Steelworks covers a large area of land which dominates the south east of the town.

Modern Port Talbot is a town formed from the merging of multiple villages, including Baglan, Margam, and Aberafan.

His portrayal of Aberafan as a small, struggling village suggests that the port was not in great use, especially as traffic to and from Margam Abbey would have ceased following its dissolution in 1536.

[12] The area of the parish of Margam lying on the west bank of the lower Afan became industrialised following the establishment of a copperworks in 1770.

Christopher Rice Mansel Talbot (1803–1890), a Liberal Member of Parliament (MP) for Glamorgan from 1830 until his death, saw the potential of his property as a site for an extensive ironworks, which opened in early 1831.

[citation needed] The remains of a Chain Home Low early warning radar station are situated in Margam Country Park, dating from World War II (c. 1941–1943).

This harbour was capable of discharging iron ore vessels of 100,000 deadweight tonnage (DWT),[15] a tenfold improvement on the old dock.

The town is built along the eastern rim of Swansea Bay in a narrow strip of coastal plain surrounding the River Afan estuary.

With heavy industry and an urban motorway, Port Talbot was reported as having the worst air pollution in Wales in 2005 with a PM10 particulate level of 30 μg/m3 (micrograms per cubic metre).

In 2021 Neath Port Talbot ranked ninth for total population out of 22 local authority areas in Wales.

Several landslips occur in the highlands including many bole holes historically made for the construction of the M4 motorway, steelworks and coal mines.

A Roman milestone, an 8th-century pillar, and two Celtic crosses from the 10th century were all rescued from the steelworks site by the Talbot family and taken to Margam, where they are now in the museum, in the care of Cadw.

[40] In December 2018 the artist Banksy confirmed that he produced a mural painted on the corner of a garage close to Port Talbot steelworks.

[42] In April 2011, actor Michael Sheen led a 72-hour National Theatre Wales production of a modern retelling of The Passion.

The play began at 5:30 am on Good Friday with a seafront scene, inspired by John the Baptist's baptism of Jesus, which was watched by hundreds who had heard about it by word of mouth.

By the time the first main part of the play was performed on Aberafan Beach at 3:00 pm, organisers estimated up to 6,000 people had gathered to watch.

A trial was performed on Civic Square before a procession from Station Road, with the final scene, "the cross", at Aberafan seafront.

By the time the procession had reached the seafront close to where it had begun 72 hours earlier, organisers estimate over 13,000 people had come to watch on the small roundabout.

In April 2012, Michael Sheen returned to attend the world premiere of the feature-length film The Gospel of Us based on The Passion.

In 2005 the area was granted its first radio station when Afan FM, the inspiration of a group of local young people, was awarded a five-year licence by Ofcom to serve Port Talbot and Neath.

Following a December 2009 fire at the AquaDome, Afan FM moved to Aberafan House, adjacent to the town's shopping centre.

The Port Talbot Guardian was a weekly paper published by Media Wales, part of the Trinity Mirror group, but ceased publication in October 2009.

Terry Gilliam has recounted how he was inspired to create the movie Brazil after hearing a transistor radio play the song Aquarela do Brasil on the beach at Port Talbot.

A Sustrans cycle route has recently been constructed at this bus station as part of the connect2 scheme connecting the Afan Valley with Aberafan beach.

This busy urban stretch of the M4, with tight bends, two-lane carriageways, short narrow slip roads and concrete walls on both sides, was the first length of motorway in Wales when it opened to traffic in 1966.

[48] The tidal basin is capable of handling ships of up to 170,000 DWT and is used mostly for the import of iron ore and coal for use by nearby Port Talbot Steelworks.

On 20 November 2007, the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR) granted consent for the world's largest biomass power station to be built at Port Talbot.

The resort will include ski slopes, zip wires, tree top high-wire courses, Bear Grylls Survival Academy, an aqua adventure park, an equestrian centre, mountain biking, BMX and skate parks, a luxury spa, central plaza with shops and restaurants, 100-bed hotel and 500 luxury lodges.

They are operated by Neath Port Talbot County Borough Council, the Ministry of Defence and a range of other charitable organisations.

Afan Forest Park to the north of the town has a number of dedicated mountain biking trails including the 'Penhydd', 'Y Wâl', 'Skyline', 'White's Level' and 'W²'.