Huge package for rail services in the North

The government has announced a huge package for transport in the North of England, meaning the government spend more than double as much money per head on local transport in the North than in the South, including London.

For years, people across the North have struggled with a broken transport system, with long waiting times, unreliable services, and outdated vehicles.

The prime minister is set to announce plans to make the Liverpool-Hull corridor an economic superpower, a rival to the Oxford-Cambridge corridor, kickstarted with £1.7 billion this year.

This comes on top of further funding announced, including a key line connecting Manchester, Huddersfield, Leeds, and York, which has struggled under disruptions and delays for years without a solution. The route will receive a £415 million funding package to restore flagging services. The upgrades across the TransPennine route are expected to slash journey times from Manchester and Leeds from 50 to 42 minutes, with up to six fast services every hour. 

£1 billion will also go towards Northern local leaders, who will be able to use the funding to improve transport services that local people use every day. This comes alongside £270 million investment in bus services and £330 million in road maintenance across the North.

This funding, supporting regional mayors by allowing them to make their own financial decisions, will transform people’s lives through connecting towns and cities of the North together that have been cut off from each other for far too long.

Further announcements include a Mass Transit system for West Yorkshire progressing, with the next stage of the business case expected in the Autumn, a new Merseyrail station in the Baltic Triangle to start works this Autumn, and fast-tracking the Bury Interchange development, with £80 million set to improve bus and tram connectivity across Greater Manchester.