Direct Rail Service Plan Supported By PM
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on the BBC.
This is the sub-heading.
Plans for a new passenger rail service running direct trains between north Wales, the West Midlands and London have received support from the prime minister.
These three paragraphs add detail to the story.
A new open-access rail operator, external, called the Wrexham, Shropshire and Midlands Railway (WSMR), has been formed, offering passengers in Wrexham, as well as Gobowen, Shrewsbury, Walsall and Coleshill, a direct link with the capital.
Speaking in the Commons, Shrewsbury’s Labour MP Julia Buckley asked Sir Keir Starmer if he would support the provider’s application.
The prime minister responded, saying he would be “delighted to make sure the MP and other interested MPs meet with the rail minister to put their case forward”.
He didn’t actually say he supported the application, but then lawyers are careful with words, as every syllable costs money.
I have a few thoughts on this service.
The North Wales Metro
The North Wales Metro was announced today and I wrote about it in £2.1bn North Wales Rail Overhaul Plans Unveiled.
The Wrexham, Shropshire and Midlands Railway connects the North Wales Metro to Gobowen, Shrewsbury, Wolverhampton, Coleshill and London Euston.
Will The Trains Be Hydrogen Powered
In Alstom And Eversholt Rail Sign An Agreement For The UK’s First Ever Brand-New Hydrogen Train Fleet, I reported how Alstom could be going to build a fleet of hydrogen trains in Derby.
I just wonder, if Alstom are going to create a hydrogen train with this specification.
- Five cars
- 125 mph top speed
- Ability to use electrification, where it exists.
- Sufficient range on hydrogen to cover the non-electrified section of the route between Wrexham General and Wolverhampton.
- Wrexham General and Wolverhampton is just under sixty miles and takes an hour and six minutes.
As the fastest trains between London Euston and Walverhampton take one hour and forty-nine minutes, trains would take just under three hours between London Euston and Wrexham General.
I rode an Alstom hydrogen-powered train in Germany in March 2019 and wrote My First Ride In An Alstom Coradia iLint.
I took this picture at the time.
Alstom certainly have all the technology to build a 125 mph hydrogen-powered train, that can use electrification.
Where Would A Hydrogen Train Be Refuelled?
I suspect, that as the train would probably have a range of around a thousand kilometres, it could fill up overnight at Wrexham.
The hydrogen could be sourced from Runcorn or it might even be generated at the depot.
Would A Hydrogen Train Attract Passengers?
If the hydrogen-powered train were to be mouse-quiet like Wrightbus’s hydrogen buses, I believe it would.
£2.1bn North Wales Rail Overhaul Plans Unveiled
The title of this post is the same as this article on the BBC.
This is the sub-heading.
A £2.1bn plan to overhaul north Wales’ railway network has been unveiled by Welsh Transport Secretary Ken Skates, but with no funding commitment from the UK government so far.
These three introductory paragraphs add more detail.
The proposals include more services, the introduction of pay-as-you-go “tap in tap out” technology, electrification of lines and a Metro-style service linking Wrexham and Liverpool.
Promising the plans would mean “better stations and more trains”, Welsh ministers have committed an initial £13m, with substantial UK government cash needed to realise the proposals.
The UK government has been asked to comment.
Having lived in Liverpool for seven years, I can understand how this upgrade will benefit Wales and also bring the area closer to Liverpool and Merseyside, to the benefit of the wider region.
There is also this press release from the Welsh Government, which is entitled “METRO IS GO” with Network North Wales.
This press release says plans include.
- Commencing work on the line between Wrexham and Liverpool as the crucial first phase of delivering metro services direct between the two cities.
- Doubling train services between Wrexham and Chester next May.
- Bringing forward the introduction of 50% more services across the North Wales mainline from December 2026 to next May – resulting in a new service from Llandudno to Liverpool and extending the Manchester Airport service to Holyhead in place of Llandudno.
- Upon completion of rail line works at Padeswood, increase train services between Wrexham and Bidston to 2 trains per hour within the next three years, ahead of the introduction of 4 trains per hour that will run direct between Wrexham and Liverpool by 2035.
- The existing Borderlands Line will also be renamed the Wrexham – Liverpool line.
- Key stations on the Wrexham – Liverpool line will be improved in the next 12 months.
- Trains operating on the Wrexham – Liverpool line will be wrapped to reflect the communities and football clubs they serve.
- Introducing Pay as You Go tap in tap out technology – covering connections between Gobowen and Rhyl, and along the full length of the Wrexham -Liverpool line
- Working with Network Rail to determine the feasibility of a rapid delivery of a new test railway station at Deeside Industrial Park, to gauge demand for permanent services to the park.
- A new, multi-million pound electrification innovation fund to develop a plan to decarbonise the railway in North Wales and enable more frequent metro services and additional stations
- Match funding for step-free access at Shotton and Ruabon stations.
- Working with local authorities to develop plans for Gateway multi-modal interchanges at Holyhead, Bangor, Caernarfon and Wrexham.
- A new T13 bus service – connecting Rhyl, Ruthin, Denbigh and Wrexham.
- Examining options to re-open stations and build new stations to serve employment growth areas.
- A new bus network specifically designed to link communities with industrial estates in the Flintshire and Wrexham Investment Zone.
It all seems very comprehensive.
The Current Wrexham And Liverpool Route
This OpenRailwayMap shows the railways of North Wales between Chester, Flint and Wrexham Central.
Note.
- Wrexham Central station is at the bottom of the map indicated by the blue arrow.
- Chester is in the North-East corner of the map, where three orange tracks meet.
- The orange track running East from Chester is the North Wales Coast Line to Crewe
- The orange track running West from Chester is the North Wales Coast Line to Shotton, Flint and then on to Llandudno, Bangor and Holyhead.
- The orange track running South from Chester goes to Wrexham.
- The yellow track running North from Chester is Merseyrail to Liverpool.
- Flint station is in the North-West corner of the map, with Shotton station between Chester and Flint stations.
- The yellow track running North from Wrexham Central station to Shotton station is the Borderlands Line to Bidston for Liverpool.
This second OpenRailwayMap shows the two Wrexham stations and the lines to Liverpool and Chester.
Note.
The orange track running North-South is the Chester and Shrewsbury Line, which runs through Wrexham General station.
The yellow track running North -West is the Borderlands Line to Shotton and Bidston for Liverpool.
Wrexham Central station is on an extension of the Borderlands Line.
This third OpenRailwayMap shows where the Borderlands Line crosses the River Dee on the Hawarden Bridge.
Note.
- Running across the South-West corner of the map is the River Dee.
- The orange track in the South-West corner of the map is the North Wales Coast Line between Chester and Holyhead.
- The yellow track is the Borderlands Line between Wrexham and Bidston for Liverpool.
- The Borderlands Line crosses the River Dee on the Hawarden Bridge.
- Shotton station is a poor interchange between the two lines.
- Hawarden Bridge station is North of the river.
This fourth OpenRailwayMap shows where the Borderlands Line joins Merseyrail’s Wirral Line at Bidston station.
Note.
- Bidston station is in the vNorth-West corner of the map.
- The yellow track running West from Bidston station is Merseyrail to West Kirby.
- The yellow track running South from Bidston station is the Borderlands Line to Wrexham.
- The yellow track running North from the triangular junction to the East of Bidston station is Merseyrail to New Brighton.
- The yellow track running East from the triangular junction to the East of Bidston station is Merseyrail to Liverpool via Birkenhead North, Birkenhead Park, Conway Park and Hamilton Square stations.
- Birkenhead Central station is in the South-Eastern corner of the map and is on Merseyrail’s branches to Chester and Ellesmere Port stations.
Services from Chester, Ellesmere Port, New Brighton and West Kirby all combine at Hamilton Square to go round the stations under the centre of Liverpool; James Street, Moorfields, Lime Street, Central and James Street (again).
Wrexham And Liverpool Improvements
These plans concern the Borderlands Line or the Wrexham and Liverpool Line.
- Commencing work on the line between Wrexham and Liverpool as the crucial first phase of delivering metro services direct between the two cities.
- Upon completion of rail line works at Padeswood, increase train services between Wrexham and Bidston to 2 trains per hour within the next three years, ahead of the introduction of 4 trains per hour that will run direct between Wrexham and Liverpool by 2035.
- The existing Borderlands Line will also be renamed the Wrexham – Liverpool line.
- Key stations on the Wrexham – Liverpool line will be improved in the next 12 months.
- Trains operating on the Wrexham – Liverpool line will be wrapped to reflect the communities and football clubs they serve.
- Introducing Pay as You Go tap in tap out technology – covering connections between Gobowen and Rhyl, and along the full length of the Wrexham -Liverpool line
- Working with Network Rail to determine the feasibility of a rapid delivery of a new test railway station at Deeside Industrial Park, to gauge demand for permanent services to the park.
- A new, multi-million pound electrification innovation fund to develop a plan to decarbonise the railway in North Wales and enable more frequent metro services and additional stations
- Match funding for step-free access at Shotton and Ruabon stations.
- Examining options to re-open stations and build new stations to serve employment growth areas.
There looks a lot to do, but none of the actions would appear to be that large and expensive.
Running Class 777 Trains Between Wrexham Central Station And Liverpool City Centre
Consider.
- There is no way, that the Office of Road and Rail will allow any more third rail electrification.
- Class 777 trains could be fitted with pantographs, if the trains need to be charged on the tracks past Bidston station.
- Siemens Mobility have developed a Rail Charging Converter, that I wrote about in Technology Behind Siemens Mobility’s British Battery Trains Hits The Tracks.
- I suspect Stadler have some similar technology for the Class 777 trains.
- Wrexham Central station is a single platform station.
- Bidston and Wrexham Central stations are 27.5 miles apart or a 55 mile round trip.
- In New Merseyrail Train Runs 135km On Battery, I describe how a Class 777 train ran for over eighty miles on battery power.
In Liverpool City Centre, trains would join services from Chester, Ellesmere Port, New Brighton and West Kirby and go round a loop through James Street, Moorfields, Liverpool Lime Street, Liverpool Central and James Street.
This Google Map shows Wrexham Central station.
Note.
- The single track, with the platform alongside.
- There would be plenty of space on the North side of the track to put up a short length of overead wire to charge the trains.
- The station appears to be surrounded by a shopping centre.
One platform should be able to handle four trains per hour (tph)
This second Google Map shows Bidston station.
Note.
- Bidston station is indicated by the station symbol.
- Merseyrail’s line between West Kirby and Liverpool runs through the station.
- Trains to Liverpool take the Eastern point of the triangular junction.
- Trains to New Brighton take the Northern point of the triangular junction.
- Trains to West Kirby and Wrexham take the Westerly lines, from Bidston station.
Work will probably need to be done at the junction, where the West Kirby and Wrexham line split.
I discuss the work at Padeswood in Train Frequency Focus In North Wales Transport Commission’s Interim Recommendations.
It doesn’t seem to me, that to be able to run 2 or even 4 tph between Wrexham Central and Liverpool, is going to need a large budget. Although, a few extra Class 777 trains, with a battery-electric capability, will be needed.
But this corner of Wales will have one of the world’s first battery-electric international trains.
New And Improved Services And Stations
These plans concern new and improved services and stations on the Borderlands Line or the Wrexham and Liverpool Line.
- The existing Borderlands Line will also be renamed the Wrexham – Liverpool line.
- Key stations on the Wrexham – Liverpool line will be improved in the next 12 months.
- Trains operating on the Wrexham – Liverpool line will be wrapped to reflect the communities and football clubs they serve.
- Introducing Pay as You Go tap in tap out technology – covering connections between Gobowen and Rhyl, and along the full length of the Wrexham -Liverpool line
- Match funding for step-free access at Shotton station.
- Examining options to re-open stations and build new stations to serve employment growth areas.
Deeside Industrial Park Station
This is planned for Deeside Industrial Park station.
Working with Network Rail to determine the feasibility of a rapid delivery of a new test railway station at Deeside Industrial Park, to gauge demand for permanent services to the park.
This Google Map shows Deeside Industrial Park
Note.
Shotton station is in the South West corner of the map.
Hawarden Bridge station is indicated by the red arrow.
The double-track Borderlands Line runs between the two stations and then Northwards between the warehouses and factories of the estate.
This second Google Map shows the area to the North of the two stations in greater detail.
Note.
- Flintshire Bridge Converter Station is the Southern end of the 2.2 GW Western HVDC Link from Scotland.
- Toyota’s Deeside Solar Park.
- The Borderland’s Line running between the substation and the solar park.
It does appear there could be plenty of space for a station.
Network Rail on Merseyside certainly have access to to a temporary station, as these pictures show of one’s use at Liverpool South Parkway station, which I wrote about in Liverpool South Parkway Station Stands In For Lime Street.
Note.
- It was mainly built of scaffolding.
- It was long enough for an eleven-car Class 390 train.
It could certainly be rearranged to make a temporary two-platform station.
But why a temporary station?
- It may turn out, that Bidston and Wrexham Central is too long for battery-electric trains.
- But Deeside Industrial Park station would be about half-way, so an ideal place for a pit-stop.
- It’s also got plenty of electricity.
- Toyota might also want to see how it helps the operation of their engine plant.
Network Rail might want to try out the idea of building a temporary station elsewhere in the future.
Trump’s Tax Bill To Cost 830,000 Jobs And Drive Up Bills And Pollution Emissions, Experts Warn
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on The Guardian.
This is the sub-heading.
Bill will unleash millions more tonnes of planet-heating pollution and couldn’t come at a worse time, say experts
This first paragraph adds a bit more detail.
A Republican push to dismantle clean energy incentives threatens to reverberate across the US by costing more than 830,000 jobs, raising energy bills for US households and threatening to unleash millions more tonnes of the planet-heating pollution that is causing the climate crisis, experts have warned.
After that the news gets worse for the planet and the sooner Tamworth retires or is retired, the better!
An Extreme Day Out – Bradford Forster Square Station
It seems to be the fashion to go and visit somewhere far away in a day. So why not?
For my first trip in this vein, I decided on the spur of the moment to go to Bradford Forster Square station.
Why Did I Choose Bradford Forster Square Station?
There are three main reasons.
- A new platform has just opened at the station to handle the longest LNER trains.
- LNER are now running a seven trains per day (tpd) service via Leeds.
- I wanted to see how LNER’s walk-up ticketing performed on the route.
In addition, I wanted to see how the service performed, now that Bradford is this year’s UK City of Culture.
King’s Cross To Bradford Forster Square Station For £43.00 With A Railcard
I just missed the 11:03, so I booked the 13:03 for £43.00 with my Senior Railcard, from one of the numerous ticket machines in King’s Cross.
The train arrived on time in two hours 47 minutes for the 199.4 miles, which was an average speed of 72 mph.
In What Will Be The Fastest Times Possible Between London King’s Cross And Leeds?, I predicted this.
I wouldn’t be surprised to see with full digital signalling and a 125 mph average between London King’s Cross and Leeds.
- 125 mph Base Time – 89 minutes.
- Four Acceleration/Deceleration sections at 6 minutes each – 24 minutes.
- Three Dwell Times at 2 minutes each – 6 minutes
This would mean a total time of one hour and 59 minutes.
As my Bradford service took two hours and 28 minutes between London King’s Cross And Leeds, that would mean, that a time close to two hours and fifteen minutes could be possible between London King’s Cross and Bradford Forster Square stations.
There Weren’t Many Passengers Between Leeds And Bradford Forster Square Stations
These pictures show the nearly empty train and the small numbers, who alighted at Bradford Forster Square station.
But I don’t think three in the afternoon is a time, when many passengers will need to go between Leeds and Bradford Forster Square stations.
Bradford Forster Square Station
I described that station, with its new Platform 0 in Bradford Forster Square Station – 20th May 2025, where I said the station needed these additions.
The station needs a few additions, like a proper coffee shop, a better shop, ticket machines and toilets.
But it’s not been open very long.
Bradford Forster Square Station To King’s Cross For £25.70 With A Railcard
I bought this ticket from a Yorkshire Lass in the Ticket Office.
There Weren’t Many Passengers Between Bradford Forster Square And King’s Cross Stations
Only about a dozen passengers boarded the train at Bradford Forster Square and some got out at Leeds.
In fact the train wasn’t very busy all the way to London with perhaps twenty passengers in my carriage, when we arrived in King’s Cross.
Will This Service Develop Into A Two-Hourly London King’s Cross And Leeds Or Bradford Forster Square Service With A Trans-Yorkshire Service Tacked On?
Currently, it is the following.
- An express service between King’s Cross and Leeds with stops at Peterborough, Doncaster and Wakefield Westgate.
- An express service between King’s Cross and Bradford Forster Square with stops at Peterborough, Doncaster, Wakefield Westgate and Leeds.
- A local service between Doncaster and Bradford Forster Square with stops at Wakefield Westgate and Leeds.
- Additional calls on some services are at Stevenage, Grantham, Retford and Shipley.
In addition the following would be possible.
- Pairs of trains could split at Leeds, with one train going to Bradford Forster Square and the other train to somewhere like Harrogate, Huddersfield or Skipton.
- Additional stops could be added between Leeds and Bradford Forster Square without slowing services between Leeds and King’s Cross.
But then where does this fit with LNER buying ten CAF tri-mode trains?
Surely they would get better flexibility, if they’d bought more Azumas, which could run on the electrification all the way to Bradford Forster Square, Huddersfield and Skipton. If some had batteries, they could run all the way to Harrogate.
LNER’s Disabled-Unfriendly Refreshments System
I am not disabled, but I only have one fully-working hand, as the school bully broke my left humerus and I have difficulty doing certain things with my left hand, due to the quality of the care I received in Highlands Hospital in Winchmore Hill.
Having a left-sided stroke didn’t help either.
One of the things, I can’t do is take pictures on my mobile phone, so I always carry a proper camera. Because of the injury, I have also never read a QR code with my phone.
On LNER’s trains to get a drink, you either have to order it by reading a QR code or walking to the buffet.
As on the train going North, the buffet was closed, I went thirsty.
In future, if I have a choice of trains, I’ll choose one with a trolly service.
Are The CAF Tri-Mode Trains Part Of A Plan To Drive Open Access Operators Out Of Yorkshire?
This is possibly the only scenario that makes sense.
The ten-car tri-mode trains would be used to take over Grand Central’s services to Bradford Interchange and Sunderland, and Hull Trains services to Hull.
After Monday, LNER are now running more daily services to Bradford Forster Square, than Grand Central are to Bradford Interchange.
If like my return to London on Tuesday, you can buy a walk-up ticket on LNER, then why would you travel on Grand Central.
Conclusion
£68.70 is not a bad price for what is in effect a walk-up day return to Bradford Forster Square.
I’ve just looked how much, I would be charged for an advance ticket on Friday, using the trains I used on Tuesday.
I could get a ticket for £25.70 going North and £28.95 going South or a total of £54.65. All are with my Senior Railcard.
But it does look to me, that LNER and the Government are trying to drive Grand Central off the Bradford route.
If I am right and Hull Trains and Lumo will be next in LNER’s sights, then what was Starmer and other Government ministers doing at the launch of orders for new trains for Grand Central, Hull Trains and Lumo?
The Anonymous Widower 