Work on the Transpennine Route Upgrade will be accelerated through the cash injection of £3.9bn, leading to quicker journey times, reduced carbon emissions and more reliable services between key northern cities, Rail Minister Huw Merriman will announce today.
Once complete, the full route will offer significantly improved services on the route between Manchester, Huddersfield, Leeds, and York, with rail users benefiting from a fully-electrified line, accessible stations and more frequent services.
Today’s announcement means government has invested a total of £6.9 billion into the upgrade, with the initial £3 billion funding work to deliver early benefits by the middle of the decade, such as the electrification of tracks.
Further funding will be confirmed by the department as the project progresses to support the overall cost of up to £11.5 billion. This takes the total investment from central government above what was provided for Crossrail, reflecting the scale of what’s being delivered for northern passengers.
The project also underpins the delivery of Northern Powerhouse Rail, which the government recently strengthened its support for by pledging a further £12 billion into its delivery to better connect Liverpool and Manchester.
Furthermore, Bradford and Hull are to be brought into the NPR scheme, using savings from HS2. The new Bradford station will support regeneration efforts in the UK’s seventh-largest city and facilitate a new rail connection to Manchester via Huddersfield – almost halving journey times whilst doubling the frequency of services and double the capacity with up to an extra 1,000 seats per hour.
The Transpennine Route Upgrade followed by NPR demonstrate the government’s commitment to investing in infrastructure to improve rail connections right across the North of England.
Rail Minister Huw Merriman said: “The Transpennine Route Upgrade represents the first major step in delivering transformed east-west connectivity in the north and I’m delighted to announce this multi-billion-pound funding boost to move to the next stage of delivery.
“Today’s announcement demonstrates this government’s commitment to delivering its Network North plan which will improve journeys, help to level up regions and grow the economy.”
Once complete in the mid-2030s, the upgrade will offer up to eight trains per hour, hundreds of extra seats, and cut journey times between Manchester and York by 10 minutes.
