Will Andy Burnham Take The Highview Road To Lower Energy Bills?
Has Andy Burnham Ever Said He’d Like Energy Bills To Come Down?
I asked Google AI, the question in the title of this section of this post, and received this reply.
Yes, Andy Burnham has explicitly stated he wants to bring energy bills down, making it a central priority upon becoming UK Prime Minister in July 2026. He has pledged to give voters “breathing room” on the cost of living and is considering radical market overhauls to reduce household costs.
But has he looked at radical engineering solutions, that would also help to push energy bills down.
This morning, I wrote Molten Salt And Human Sweat: The Weird Batteries That Could Store Renewable Energy, which is based on a must-read article in today’s Guardian.
The Guardian article shows Andy Burnham with Highview Power’s engineers and managers at the ground breaking ceremony of Highview Power’s 50MW/300 MWh liquid-air grid battery at Carrington in Andy Burham’s feifdom of Greater Manchester, where he was mayor for nine years.
In Andy Burnham and Highview Power, I asked Google AI about their relationship and Andy Burnham came over as an enthusiastic supporter of Highview Power.
In UK Wind Risks ‘Exponentially Rising’ Curtailment Without Energy Storage, I discuss using Highview’s batteries to avoid shutting wind turbines down, when we have too much electricity.
I believe that if Andy Burnham, were to experdite up to 20 of Highview’s largest 300 MW/3.2 GWh batteries around the UK, this would have the right effect on energy bills.
I would hope that Andy Burnham is watching the progress of the Carrington battery closely.
Molten Salt And Human Sweat: The Weird Batteries That Could Store Renewable Energy
The title of this post is the same as that of this article in The Guardian.
This is the sub-heading.
From Nevada to Manchester, developers are trialling innovative solutions to clean energy’s biggest challenge
These first three paragraphs give a taste of what is to come.
In the deserts of the United Arab Emirates a sprawling clean energy project, stretching across an area roughly the size of 12,600 football fields, will play host to a breakthrough allowing solar energy to power the equivalent of half a million homes through the night.
The Gulf state has been steadily combining 5.2GW of solar power capacity with 19GWh of battery storage to create the largest battery scheme in the world.
Meanwhile, about 7,500 miles away, at the US’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory facility in Colorado, researchers and engineers are making some of the smallest batteries the world has ever seen. A fraction of the size of the grid-scale lithium-ion batteries used to store renewable energy, they have been designed to power electronic tags that will track the 3in-long (about 7.5cm) young from salmon and eel species.
And seeing, that they used to be the Manchester Guardian and that Andy Burnham is surely the man-of-the-day for other reasons, Highview Power’s 50 MW/300 MWh at Carrington in Manchester gets a big mention under a section heading of Liquid Air, with Burnham in hi-vis jacket and hard hat.
The article is very much a must read, that features projects from the United Arab Emirates, Colorado, Finland, Manchester, Nevada and Japan.
Andy Burnham Promised 10,000 Council Houses. Guess The Tally So Far
The title of this post, is the same as that, of this article in The Times.
This is the sub-heading.
Greater Manchester is a success story but that has little to do with the mayor, still less the economic model he is touting for the country
These are the first two paragraphs.
I don’t like being mean to Andy Burnham. With his soft, doe-eyed features, it feels rather like punching a lamb. But it’s quite an achievement when “We’ve got to get beyond this thing of being in hock to the bond markets” isn’t actually the stupidest thing a politician has said in any given week.
The other day Burnham kicked off his not-quite-a-leadership bid by urging Labour to embrace “Manchesterism”. This he defined as “business-friendly socialism”, in which the state “rolled back the 1980s” by seizing control of “the basics of life”: housing, energy, water, rail. This included borrowing £40 billion for new council housing.
This paragraph from Robert Colville gives the current progress on housing in Manchester.
Burnham did announce, in May 2024, that he was going to build 10,000 council houses by 2028. But over the following year the region started construction on just ten. No, that’s not a typo.
That is not a good start!
TerraLithium, BHE Renewables Announce Key Milestones For Geothermal Lithium Project In California
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on ThinkGeoEnergy.
This is the sub-heading.
TerraLithium and BHE Renewables have announced key milestones towards advancing technology for lithium extraction from geothermal brines in Imperial Valley, California.
This is the important paragraph in the article.
The business model of coupling lithium and critical minerals extraction with geothermal energy production is gaining increasing attention, both in the United States and in countries like Germany, France, and the UK. As demonstrated in the United Downs geothermal power project in Cornwall, lithium extraction provides additional revenue generation that can significantly improve the economics of deep geothermal projects.
So here we have little Cornwall showing Big California how to get power and lithium out of hot rocks.
In Cornish Plant Produces Geothermal Power, I described the progress at the Cornish plant in March.
Has Andy Burnham Ever Said Anything On Geothermal Energy?
Given that there is an election or coronation under way, I just had to ask Google AI, the question in the title of this section.
This is the answer I received.
Yes, Andy Burnham has occasionally engaged with topics involving geothermal energy, particularly in the context of tapping natural underground heat and mine water for green energy
His notable references to the technology include:
Supporting Manchester’s Geothermal Potential: He has voiced support for localized renewable heat projects, such as exploratory borehole plans in Manchester city centre intended to tap into thermal springs for community heating.
I think we can put that down as a favourable view.
This excellent article on the BBC is entitled Plan To Heat Manchester Homes With A Geothermal Spring, is worth a full read.
Has Andy Burnham Made Any Comments About The Picc-Vic Tunnel?
This is the introductory paragraph for the Wikipedia entry for the Picc-Vic Tunnel.
Picc-Vic was a proposed, and later cancelled, underground railway designed in the early 1970s with the purpose of connecting two major mainline railway termini in Manchester city centre, England. The name Picc-Vic was a contraction of the two key station names, Manchester Piccadilly and Manchester Victoria. The proposal envisaged the construction of an underground rail tunnel across Manchester city centre. The scheme was abandoned in 1977 during its proposal stages. The view was that the scheme still retained two large and expensive-to-maintain terminal stations in Manchester while other similarly sized cities had reduced their terminals to one.
Note.
- British Rail had a plan to improve the rail system in the North of England, by building rail tunnels under Liverpool, Manchester and Newcastle.
- Liverpool’s and Newcastle’s tunnels were built and are used by Merseyrail and the Newcastle Metro.
- Harold Wilson cancelled the Picc-Vic Tunnel, the TSR2, the Channel Tunnel and Maplin Airport, as he’d run out of taxpayer’s money.
I asked Google-AI, the question in the title of this post, and received this answer.
Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham has made extensive comments about the Picc-Vic tunnel, effectively resurrecting the concept of an underground railway for the city.
Key details of his statements include:
The Vision: Burnham has tasked Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) with designing a conceptual underground system—which has been likened to a “Crossrail for Manchester”. He envisions two lines (North-South and East-West) intersecting at a new subterranean station at Manchester Piccadilly.
Rebranding the Concept: Acknowledging the original 1970s Picc-Vic plan that was ultimately shelved, Burnham views the new tunnel as an absolute necessity to cope with the city’s growth, stating “it is essential to the future economic prosperity of the city-region”.
Piccadilly Station: He is adamant that Manchester Piccadilly Station should be the “Kings Cross of the North”. He has pushed heavily against “cut-price” infrastructure, demanding an entirely underground railway option rather than sprawling over-ground train lines.
Next Steps: He has instructed officials to prepare detailed plans and cost estimates for the multi-billion pound project, with initial discussions on funding mechanisms already underway with the government.
You can read more about his 10-year strategy announcement on the BBC News report or follow local discourse on the Reddit Manchester threads.
Conclusion
If Andy Burnham is going to do all this for his beloved Manchester, can the rest of the country, afford him to be Prime Minister?
The Former Unilever Site At Warrington – 6th May 2026
I went past this site twice yesterday on my way to and from Blackpool.
I took these pictures going Northwards.
And I took these pictures going Southwards.
A quick search of the Internet on my phone revealed.
- It was a former soap works, that had previously been owned by Unilever.
- The site was now going to be developed as a data centre.
This OpenRailwayMap shows the railways through the area.
Note.
- Warrington Bank Quay station is indicated by the blue arrow in the middle of the map.
- The Unilever site is to its North-West.
- Warrington Bank Quay station is a major station on the West Coast Main Line and will probably be on High Speed Two, which will share tracks with the West Coast Main Line.
- The two East-West lines are not electrified.
- Warrington West is a relatively new station, that I wrote about in 2020, in The New Warrington West Station.
This OpenRailwayMap shows the railway lines between Liverpool and the coast in the West and the West Coast main Line in the East.
Note.
- The Merseyrail third rail network shown in lilac.
- Electrified tracks shown in red.
- Tracks without electrification shown in black.
- Warrington Bank Quay station indicated by the blue arrow.
- The West Coast Main Line (WCML) runs North-South at the Eastern edge of the map.
- Wigan North Western station is in the North East corner of the map.
- Wigan North Western and Warrington Bank Quay stations are both on the WCML.
Five lines connect the Liverpool local network to the WCML.
- The top unelectrified line connects the new Headbolt Lane station to Wigan Wallgate station.
- The most Northerly electrified line connects Liverpool Lime Street and Wigan North Western stations via Huyton station.
- The second electrified line connects Liverpool Lime Street and Manchester via Newton-le-Willows station.
- The most Northerly of the bottom pair of unelectrified lines connects Liverpool Lime Street and Manchester via Warrington Central station.
- The final line is a freight line between Liverpool and Manchester along the Mersey. This line runs under the WCML
The last line is likely to be upgraded to become Northern Powerhouse Rail between Liverpool Lime Street and Manchester via Manchester Airport.
This picture shows a freight train passing under Warrington Bank Quay station.
This OpenRailway Map shows how the lines cross to the South of Warrington Bank Quay station.
Note.
- The electrified North-South line is the West Coast Main Line (WCML).
- There is quite a good amount of space.
Could the junction be designed, so that HS2 trains could go between Manchester and London?
Treasures Found On HS2 Route Stored In Secret Warehouse
The title of this post is the same as that of this article on the BBC.
This is the sub-heading.
Treasures unearthed by hundreds of archaeologists during the ongoing construction of the controversial HS2 train line have been shown exclusively to the BBC.
These three paragraphs add detail to the story.
The 450,000 objects, which are being held in a secret warehouse, include a possible Roman gladiator’s tag, a hand axe that may be more than 40,000 years old and 19th Century gold dentures.
It is an “unprecedented” amount and array of items, which will yield new insights into Britain’s past, says the Centre for British Archaeology.
Major building developments in the UK need land to be assessed by archaeologists as part of the planning process, to protect heritage sites.
Crossrail also collected a lot of artefacts in an archaeology programme, that I wrote about in Bison to Bedlam or How To Make Friends.
Typing “TransPennine Route Archaeology” into Google AI gave this answer.
AI Overview
Archaeological investigations for the Trans-Pennine upgrades are split into two major, parallel projects: the A66 Northern Trans-Pennine road project and the Transpennine Route Upgrade (TRU) rail project. Both have revealed significant historical, archaeological, and industrial remains.
A66 Northern Trans-Pennine Upgrade (Road)
As part of the A66 upgrade between Penrith and Scotch Corner, Oxford Cotswold Archaeology (OCA) is conducting extensive excavations.
Key Finds: Archaeologists have identified prehistoric settlements, Neolithic stone axes, and evidence of a 60-meter-wide posthole structure.
Roman Discovery: A major Roman vicus (settlement) and the original Roman road have been uncovered, revealing a “grid of Roman field systems and ditches” near Brough.
Locations: Key sites include Brougham, Brough, Kirkby Thore, and Crackenthorpe.
Significance: These findings illustrate the area’s long-distance connection, trade, and culture from prehistoric through Roman times.
Transpennine Route Upgrade (Rail)
This project, involving Network Rail and ASWYAS (Archaeological Services WYAS), is upgrading the railway between Manchester, Huddersfield, Leeds, and York.
172-Year-Old Railway Siding: A mid-19th-century railway siding was uncovered at Hillhouse Sidings in Huddersfield, revealing two turntables and brick-built engine sheds.
Roman Settlement (Ravensthorpe): Excavations at Ravensthorpe (for a new station) uncovered a large, hexagonal-shaped feature thought to be an Iron Age or Roman-British enclosure, featuring ceramics, glass, and animal bones.
Mirfield Viaduct: An investigation of the Grade II-listed Mirfield Viaduct (built 1836-1839) was conducted to record its structure before upgrade works.It could be a very large exhibition in the North, if High Speed Two and the two Transpennine Route Upgrades were combined in a single exhibition.
I asked Google AI, what is the largest exhibition centre in Yorkshire and received this answer.
The largest exhibition sites in Yorkshire are concentrated in Harrogate, anchored by the Great Yorkshire Event Centre and the Harrogate Convention Centre. These venues offer a combined total of over 10,000 square meters of exhibition space, accommodating major national events, conferences, and large-scale outdoor exhibitions.
I suspect Leeds, Manchester and Sheffield could have other ideas.
FirstGroup Adds Leeds-based J&B Travel To Growing Coach Portfolio
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Route One.
These two paragraphs add more detail.
J&B Travel of Leeds is the latest coach business to be acquired by FirstGroup.
The operator, which has been established for more than 40 years, has a fleet of 15 vehicles, with work including home-to-school, private hire and FlixBus contracts.
But in some ways, the most significant thing not mentioned is that FirstGroup have now acquired seven coach firms.
- AndersonTravel in London
- EnsignBus in London
- J & B Travel in Leeds
- Matthews Coaches in County Monaghan, Ireland
- Tetley’s Coaches in Leeds
- York Pullman in Harrogate, Hull, Leeds and York
Note.
- MatthewsCoaches are about halfway between Dublin and Belfast.
- Three of the English acquisitions are in Yorkshire and two are in London.
- Leeds isn’t far off being halfway between London and Central Scotland.
This looks like the first part of a master plan.
- Leeds and County Monaghan could be ideal refuelling points for zero-carbon coaches.
- Ferrybridge, just South of Leeds is getting a hydrogen-fired power station.
- Ferrybridge is a big site with a motorway service station on the M1.
- Wrightbus are building an electrolyser at Ballymena, which is 81 miles from Matthews Coaches.
- Wrightbus have said that Dublin and Cork would be an ideal route for a hydrogen coach.
- Wrightbus have said that Heathrow and Gatwick would be an ideal route for a hydrogen coach.
This plan could be built-on with routes to various cities and attractions.
I have some further sorts and questions.
Could The First Obvious Routes Be Run By Hydrogen Coaches?
From what Wrightbus have indicated, I would rate the obvious routes as.
- Dublin and Belfast – 103 miles or 206 miles round trip
- Dublin and Cork – 107 miles or 340 miles round trip
- Leeds and Glasgow – 224 miles or 448 miles round trip
- Leeds and Edinburgh – 222 miles or 444 miles round trip
- Leeds and London – 197 miles or 396 miles round trip
- Heathrow and Gatwick – 40 miles or 80 miles round trip
Note.
The longest route is 714.5 km.
It would appear that, if the hydrogen-powered coach had a range of 1,000 km. all routes would be possible.
How Far Would A Hydrogen Coach Get On A Tankful From London?
A thousand kilometres is 621.4 miles.
These are the distances from Scottish cities to London.
- Aberdeen – 537 miles
- Dundee – 472 miles
- Dunfermline – 430 miles
- Edinburgh – 410 miles
- Glasgow – 404 miles
- Inverness – 561 miles
- John O ‘Groats – 678 miles
- Perth – 451 miles
- Stirling – 418 miles
I’ve added John O’Groats for completeness, but all cities would be reached.
How Far Would A Hydrogen Coach Get On A Tankful Going West From London?
These are the distances from Western towns and cities to London.
- Aberystwyth – 236 miles
- Fishguard – 255 miles
- Holyhead – 289 miles
- Lands End – 310 miles
- Penzance – 307 miles
I’ve added Lands End for completeness, but all towns and cities would be reached.
John O’Groats And Lands End In A Hydrogen Coach
I asked Google AI how far the journey was and received this answer.
The distance from Land’s End to John o’ Groats varies by transport: about 837-874 miles (1347-1407 km) by road, roughly 600 miles (970 km) as the crow flies, and around 1,200 miles (1900 km) for an off-road walking route, with cyclists typically taking 10-14 days and walkers 2-3 months.
So it looks, like there will be a need for a refuel, but that would give 2,000 kilometres, which is more than the 1,347-1,407 kilometres needed.
Ferrybridge Could Be An Ideal Refuelling Point
I suspect, even in fifty years you could name the places in the UK, where you will be certain of refuelling any hydrogen vehicle on the fingers of one hand.
The list would include.
- Ferrybridge in Yorkshire, where SSE are building a hydrogen-fired power station.
- Felixstowe Docks in Suffolk, where there will be a need to fuel hydrogen trucks.
- Keadby in Lincolnshire, where SSE are building a hydrogen-fired power station.
- Kintore in Aberdeenshire, where an electrolyser is being built.
- Runcorn in Cheshire, where there was an electrolyser in 1968, when I worked there.
This web site lists all the UK hydrogen projects.
This Google Map shows the location of the Ferrybridge hydrogen-powered power station site in relation to Barnsley, Doncaster, Leeds and other towns and cities of Yorkshire.
Note.
- The red arrow indicates the former coal-fired power station site.
- Leeds is in the North-West corner of the map.
- Barnsley and Stocksbridge are in the South-West corner of the map.
- The city of Sheffield is to the South-West of Stocksbridge.
- Doncaster is in the South-East corner of the map.
Last September I wrote Visiting The Consultation For Ferrybridge Next Generation Power Station At Knottingley.
In that post, I wrote about supplying both the power station and the motorway services with hydrogen and felt that it could use one of two methods.
- A pipeline from the hydrogen storage in East Yorkshire.
- Some form of train from a hydrogen production site.
Recently, Network Rail have been conducting tests on the movement of hydrogen by train, which I wrote about in Network Rail’s Test Track Take Centre Stage As Hydrogen Is Delivered By Rail For The First Time.
The Ferrybridge Site Has most things needed.
This map shows the site.
Note.
- The impressive motorway junction, where the North-South M1 crosses the East-West M62.
- Liverpool and Manchester are to the West.
- Leeds, Newcastle and Scotland is to the North.
- Hull is to the East.
- London is to the South.
- There is a Moto Services.
- There is a Premier Inn.
There is even two railway stations on the map.
This reply from Google AI gives the details of the distance between Ferrybridge and the South-West.
The driving distance from Ferrybridge, Yorkshire, to Land’s End is roughly 470 to 500 miles, taking about 8-9 hours, primarily via motorways like the M1, M5, and A30, though exact times and routes vary by real-time traffic and specific starting/ending points.
I am absolutely certain, that if you have a vehicle like a hydrogen coach and you want to go anywhere between A to B on the UK mainland, then if there is hydrogen-refuelling at Ferrybridge, you will be able too do the journey with a refuel at Ferrybridge.
Reform ‘Would Scrap’ High-Speed Northern Rail Line
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on the BBC.
This is the sub-heading.
A Reform UK government would scrap plans to build the Northern Powerhouse Rail (NPR) link, its deputy leader has said.
These two paragraphs add extra details.
In a report to the right-leaning Policy Exchange think tank, Richard Tice said companies considering bidding for contracts to build east-to-west high-speed rail links should “not bother”.
Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham rejected Tice’s comments and suggested Reform UK wanted a “second-class railway” for the north of England.
As I showed in I’ve Just Glimpsed The Future Of Train Travel Across The North Of England And I Like It, much of Northern Powerhouse Rail is complete or under construction to the East of Manchester and the only section of Northern Powerhouse Rail to be announced, designed and constructed is between Liverpool Lime Street and Manchester via Manchester Airport. I discussed this section in Completing Northern Powerhouse Rail.
I also suspect that Reform UK, is the only party, that is against the building of Northern Powerhouse Rail.
Conclusion
How do you scrap a railway, that is half complete and only needs about twenty miles of new track for completion?
Wigan Wallgate To Headbolt Lane – 10th May 2025
I was now running late and decided to go back to Liverpool via the Kirkby Branch Line, with a change of train at Headbolt Lane.
I took these pictures along the route.
Note.
- Wigan Wallgate station could be refurbished into a quality station.
- Manchester to Wigan Wallgate is likely to be electrified, as I wrote in Bolton-Wigan £78m Rail Electrification Project Announced.
- Headbolt Lane station is a new station.
- The other stations on the line are fairly rudimentary affairs.
- Only Headbolt Lane station is step-free, as all platforms are on the same level.
The Kirkby Branch Line runs across the flat Lancashire countryside.
This Google Map shows the unusual layout of Headbolt Lane station.
Note.
- Liverpool is to the South-West.
- Wigan and Manchester are to the North-East.
- The station buildings and the car parks are on the North side of the tracks.
- There are two platforms pointing towards Liverpool.
- There is a single platform pointing towards Wigan.
- There is a second track pointing towards Wigan, that has no platform.
- None of the tracks are electrified.
- Three red buffer stops can be picked out.
- Trains to Liverpool are run by battery-electric Class 777 multiple units.
- Trains to Wigan and Manchester are run by diesel multiple units.
All platforms are the same level and you can walk from one side of the station to the other between the buffer stops.
It is effectively a step-free three-platform station without lifts or escalators.
I have never seen another station like it!
Modernising The Route Between Wigan Wallgate And Headbolt Lane
Consider.
- With the exception of Headbolt Lane station, there is no step-free access on this line and that needs to be addressed.
- Wigan Wallgate station has an island platform, with steps to the street.
- With the exception of Headbolt Lane station, there is very little parking.
- The Class 150 diesel multiple units are forty years old.
The distance between Wigan Wallgate and Headbolt Lane stations is about 15 miles.
The Anonymous Widower 