Wednesday 22 Dec 2021
Passengers reminded to plan ahead over festive period as Manchester railway upgrades continue
- Region & Route:
- Eastern
- | Eastern: North & East
Engineers are continuing with major track and signalling upgrades around Manchester this Christmas to boost reliability, allow more trains to run in future and improve connectivity across the North.
From Christmas Day until the early hours of Wednesday 29 December, teams will be upgrading the track in central Manchester in the latest stage of the Transpennine Route Upgrade.
Work will also take place to install new signalling equipment at Manchester Victoria to bring a more modern railway and make sure trains can continue running safely and reliably.
There will be changes for passengers on Monday 27 and Tuesday 28 December, and between Saturday 1 and Monday 3 January.
This work is part of the wider Transpennine Route Upgrade which will bring faster, more reliable services for passengers travelling between York, Leeds, Huddersfield and Manchester.
Network Rail is taking the opportunity to make progress on the upgrades on Christmas Day and Boxing Day when there are no timetabled train services. This allows workers to safely carry out the work and avoids major disruption at busier times.
Due to the complexity of the project, there will be some changes for passengers travelling to or from Manchester Victoria over the festive period and into the New Year. Most services are being diverted to other Manchester stations to keep passengers on trains as much as possible. Some high-quality bus services will also be in place to keep people moving.
Further improvements to the track and signalling will then take place between Saturday 1 and Tuesday 4 January 2022.
Passengers are strongly advised to check their journey via National Rail Enquiries or with their train operator and allow plenty of time. People are also reminded to continue following the latest Government guidance and wear a face covering on public transport, unless they are exempt.
Neil Holm, Transpennine Route Upgrade Director for Network Rail, said: “These improvements over the Christmas period are a crucial part of the Transpennine Route Upgrade which will transform journeys for passengers and better connect the North. As well as bringing more reliable services, the work will reduce delays and allow more trains to run in future.
“We’ve planned the work carefully to complete as much as possible on Christmas Day and Boxing Day when there are no timetabled train services running. There are some changes to services over the festive period, but trains are being diverted where possible for passengers who need to travel. I’d like to thank people for their continued patience and remind them to check before travelling.”
Secretary of State, Grant Shapps, said: "We're forging ahead with our £96 billion investment to transform rail journeys through high-speed services and major improvements in the North and Midlands, far sooner than under previous plans.
"These vital works between Manchester and Stalybridge, modernising tracks and signalling, will ensure more services can run here - and far more reliably. Delivering these works now - at a time when fewer people are using the railway over the festive period - ensures we minimise disruption and deliver better journeys, sooner.
"I am indebted to all those who will be working hard to deliver these vital works, and wish them all a very merry Christmas."
Chris Nutton, Major Projects Director for TransPennine Express, said: “As crucial work begins over Christmas and into the New Year for the Transpennine Route Upgrade (TRU), there will be a number of service alterations for TransPennine Express services; passengers are advised to allow for extra time and check the latest travel advice before they travel on our website www.tpexpress.co.uk/travel-updates/changes-to-train-times; updates will also be available on our social media channels. In addition, extra support will be available for passengers from Customer Delivery Managers who will be on hand to assist passengers with their journeys.”
Chris Jackson, Regional Director at Northern, said: “The Transpennine Route Upgrade is a vital part of the future of rail in the North.
“As an industry we have worked closely to keep disruption to a minimum and our customers on the move. We are advising anyone using our services over this period to plan ahead and check the latest travel updates.”
ENDS
Notes to Editors
Changes for passengers:
Monday 27 December, Tuesday 28 December 2021, Saturday 1 January, Monday 3 January 2022
- TransPennine Express services between Stalybridge and Manchester Victoria will be diverted to start/end at Manchester Piccadilly
- Buses will replace Northern trains between Manchester Victoria and Rochdale, Manchester Victoria and Salford Crescent and between Stalybridge – Ashton - Guide Bridge
- Trains that usually run between Manchester Victoria and Liverpool Lime Street will be amended to run between Manchester Oxford Road and Liverpool Lime Street only
- Trains between Manchester Victoria and Blackpool North will not run. Passengers can use alternative Northern services between Manchester Piccadilly/Manchester Oxford Road and Blackpool North
- TransPennine Express services between Liverpool and Newcastle will start/terminate at Manchester Piccadilly Additional service will run between Liverpool Lime St and Manchester Airport (via Manchester Piccadilly) to enable connections
- TransPennine Express services between Manchester Airport and Redcar Central will start/terminate at Manchester Piccadilly. Eastbound, local stops between Stalybridge and Huddersfield will be picked up by this service. Services will alternate every two hours terminating at Redcar Central and Darlington
- Westbound local stops between Stalybridge and Huddersfield will be picked up by TransPennine Express services between Manchester Piccadilly and Hull
- TransPennine Express services between Scarborough and Manchester Victoria will run as a shuttle instead between Scarborough and York
- Stopper service between Huddersfield to Manchester Piccadilly will not run
Sunday 2 January
- TransPennine Express services between Stalybridge and Manchester Victoria will be diverted to start/end at Manchester Piccadilly
- TransPennine Express services will run as replacement buses between Huddersfield and Leeds
- Transpennine Express services from Scarborough will run into Manchester Piccadilly and diverted to run via Castleford fast between York and Huddersfield providing a direct Manchester to York service
- Buses will replace Northern trains between Manchester Victoria and Rochdale, Manchester Victoria and Salford Central, and between Stalybridge – Ashton – Guide Bridge
- Buses will replace Northern trains travelling out of Leeds, including to Bradford Interchange for Calder Valley services
- Passengers travelling to/from Blackpool North should use alternative Northern services between Manchester Piccadilly/Manchester Oxford Road and Blackpool North
- Trains between Manchester Victoria and Liverpool Lime Street will start / terminate at Manchester Oxford Road
- Trains between Manchester Victoria and Clitheroe will terminate at Salford Crescent. A replacement bus service will operate between Manchester Victoria and Salford Crescent.
- TransPennine Express services from Hull to Manchester Piccadilly will start/end at Leeds
- TransPennine Express services from Redcar Central to Manchester Piccadilly, will start/end at Leeds
- TransPennine Express services from Newcastle to Liverpool will start/terminate at York. Additional service to run between Liverpool Lime St and Manchester Airport (via Manchester Piccadilly) to enable connections
Metrolink services
From 1 – 3 January there will be some changes to Metrolink services, with some bus replacements in place.
Check your journey with Transport for Greater Manchester: https://tfgm.com/christmas-services
Track upgrades at Leeds station over Christmas
Major work is also taking place at Leeds station over Christmas on a project to completely remodel the track layout between platforms 4 and 6. The improvements will boost reliability and reduce the impact of future unplanned disruption.
There are changes for passengers between Monday 27 December 2021 and Monday 3 January 2022. Very limited services will run on Sunday 2 January.
Passengers are advised to plan ahead, check their journey via National Rail Enquiries or with their train operator and allow plenty of time.
Contact information
Passengers / community members
Network Rail national helpline
03457 11 41 41
Latest travel advice
Please visit National Rail Enquiries
Journalists
Louise Leighton
Media Relations Manager
Network Rail
07858 375508
louise.leighton2@networkrail.co.uk
About Network Rail
We own, operate and develop Britain's railway infrastructure; that's 20,000 miles of track, 30,000 bridges, tunnels and viaducts and the thousands of signals, level crossings and stations. We run 20 of the UK's largest stations while all the others, over 2,500, are run by the country's train operating companies.
Usually, there are almost five million journeys made in the UK and over 600 freight trains run on the network. People depend on Britain's railway for their daily commute, to visit friends and loved ones and to get them home safe every day. Our role is to deliver a safe and reliable railway, so we carefully manage and deliver thousands of projects every year that form part of the multi-billion pound Railway Upgrade Plan, to grow and expand the nation's railway network to respond to the tremendous growth and demand the railway has experienced - a doubling of passenger journeys over the past 20 years.
Follow us on Twitter: @networkrail
Visit our online newsroom: www.networkrailmediacentre.co.uk