£530m to revamp northern rail services

NETWORK Rail today announced a £530m investment package it says will “transform” rail travel in the north.

The investment will mean a 40% increase in the number of trains running across the region with 700 extra services, capacity for a further 3.5 million passengers a year, and quicker more frequent services for Liverpool, Manchester, Leeds, Sheffield and Newcastle.

Network Rail said that removing historic bottlenecks – such as at Manchester – would allow faster line speeds, reducing journey times.

There will also be major restoration and improvements to Manchester Victoria, with the station becoming a major interchange for the north.

The investment will also see increased capacity for freight by doubling the number of paths from the west coast main line to Trafford Park, and making it possible for larger containers to move across the network.

New inter-regional and trans Pennine services will mean that six trains every hour will pass between Leeds and Manchester in under 45 minutes.

Liverpool will see an increase to four trains and hour from Manchester, taking just 33 minutes.

Maresa Molloy, head of policy & information at Liverpool Chamber, said: “The Chamber has long supported the assertion that high quality rail links are essential for the economic development of the North, and will contribute to the closing of the productivity gap between the North and South.”

Iain Coucher, chief executive of Network Rail, said: “Through better connections, faster services and improved stations we want to trigger wider growth in the north which in turn will support local jobs and businesses.

“Our ambitious vision includes miles of track, new platforms and electrification to keep driving up passenger demand while keeping freight on the rails – and lorries off of our already congested roads.”