Manchester Piccadilly station

Rail upgrades for the North West, but local leaders want more

The government have announced that there is to be a much-needed upgrade to the train journey between York and Manchester, via Leeds and Huddersfield, as well as plans to triple the budget. Despite this upgrade, local government leaders want more, with their ambitions being for more investment in rail travel in the north.

The upgrades are set to eventually make the journeys between Leeds and Manchester around half an hour long, which would see travel times halved, as well as reducing the carbon emissions by introducing more electric trains arriving in the coming years.

The original budget was around £2.9 billion; however, it has been increased to around £10-£11 billion. Speaking about this increase of budget, Secretary of State for Transport Grant Shapps said:

"This isn't just a bit of extra funding; it's tripling or even quadrupling the funding; And it's not because the project's run over budget or something like that, it's because the plan is now way more ambitious than the thing that was being talked about in 2011."

With this increase in investment, there are set to be major improvements to the standard of rail travel in the north, however Andy Burnham, Greater Manchester Mayor, has said that promises have been broken in terms of the ways that the improvements will be delivered:

“We’re glad to hear that it is receiving extra funding, but it was never the case that that alone sorts out the rail problems of the North.

We were promised a completely new line to Leeds and its completely new line to Leeds and it’s obviously hugely disappointing that that commitment is going to be met. Doing Piccadilly right has got to be the best way to level up Manchester and the North.

If you look at what has been spent on stations in London in the last decade, how we can be arguing about a few billion pounds for Piccadilly, I honestly don’t know.”

The disappointment surrounding plans for Manchester Piccadilly station come as local authority leaders have been calling for a underground, high-speed, station below Piccadilly, right in the centre of Manchester.

With the rail and other travel improvements coming across the country as part of the government’s levelling up scheme, this development will be welcome for those in the area, however there is still a way to go for the north’s ambitions of the Northern Powerhouse Rail to become a success, especially after the scaling back of the spending last year.

Public Sector Executive, Feb/March, Cover

PSE Feb/March, 23

Greater choice, greater results

Our February/March 2023 edition of PSE brings you expert comment and analysis on a range of key public sector topics, from EV infrastructure to Digital transformation and reducing carbon emissions. Learn how the UK Government is investing in highway and freight innovation or read Cllr Matthew Hicks discuss the first step towards an exciting future for Suffolk, alongside so much more…

Videos...

View all videos
#PSE365: Public Sector Decarbonisation

Be A Part Of It!

PSE365: Public Sector Decarbonisation Virtual Event | 21 Mar 2023

PSE has created a full calendar of events to address the most important issues that influence the delivery of public sector services. 

Over 365 days you’ll have the opportunity to hear from a range of highly motivating, informative and inspirational speakers. These speakers will equip you with knowledge and unique insight to enable you to overcome the challenges that you face.

Industry Survey

What are the biggest issues facing the Public Sector?

 Public Sector Executive is undergoing some in-depth research around the issues the Public Sector is facing and the importance of deploying and using new technology within Public Sector organisations. 

We are asking for your help to better understand how public sector organisations are utilising technology to support their digital strategy and your opinion on what the biggest issues facing the public sector are.

This survey only takes a couple of minutes to complete and to thank you for your time and for filling out our survey, we'll enter you into a prize draw to win a £50 Amazon voucher.

In order to assist public sector organisations with improving their existing technology estate, we hope to leverage our findings to share best practises and innovations across the public sector.

More articles...

View all