Greater Manchester rail timetable aims to 'unclog bottlenecks'

Rail Minister Chris Heaton-Harris said the new timetable was "focused on cutting delays"

A new rail timetable aimed at ensuring Greater Manchester stays connected while "bottlenecks become unclogged" has been approved by transport bosses.

The timetable follows a consultation by the government to address the poor performance of the area's rail network.

Government, council and rail operator representatives hope it will reduce passenger delays in the region by 25%.

Rail Minister Chris Heaton-Harris said the new timetable was part of the work "to fix Manchester's railways".

The core of the new services will be rolled out across the area by December 2022.

'Cutting delays'

The timetable was produced by the cross-industry Manchester Recovery Task Force, which includes representatives from the Department for Transport, Transport for the North (TfN), Transport for Greater Manchester, Network Rail and operators Northern and TransPennine Express.

TfN said the improvements will ensure "the wider Manchester area remains closely connected whilst bottlenecks become unclogged" in a number of congested "hotspots" such as Castlefield in Manchester.

It said the changes will benefit about 150,000 passengers returning to the region's rail network in the coming months.

The new timetable will include retaining direct routes from Manchester Airport to Liverpool, Chester and North Wales and hourly daytime service between Southport, Wigan and Manchester Oxford Road and Southport, Manchester Victoria and Stalybridge.

Mr Heaton-Harris said the new timetable was "focused on cutting delays".

"The work we are doing to fix Manchester's railways... is all part of us building back better from Covid-19," he added.

Why not follow BBC North West on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram? You can also send story ideas to [e-mail]