The six priorities

Hence, the six priorities. Two focus on gauging works to allow the passage of bigger trains both along the Transpennine Route and complementary projects around it, namely the Northallerton-Eaglescliffe section. Moreover, TfN is asking for the “approval and delivery of additional, complementary rail freight terminal capacity in the North West served by the Chat Moss rail corridor”, linking Manchester with Liverpool.

The fourth and fifth priorities also concern the Manchester area, including passing loops for long freight trains in Eccles and Patricroft. Additionally, TfN advised for funding the Manchester and North West Transformation Programme for further capacity developments. Finally, the sub-governmental body stressed the need for government support to improve the infrastructure around the TRU.

For the gauging works mentioned above, TfN calculated that they would cost somewhere between 55 and 60 million pounds (63 and 69 million euros). Funds for terminal capacity enhancement should come from the private sector but were not calculated, while the financial needs for the remaining priorities remains “unknown at this stage”, the appendix to the letter clarified.

The parliamentary spending watchdog said the east–west railway project, intended to transform connections between northern cities, is now entering a more defined phase after years of policy changes. However, the NAO cautioned that major infrastructure programmes of this scale still face significant delivery challenges, particularly given the number of organisations involved and the shifting scope the project has experienced since its first conception more than a decade ago.

Shifting political plans

The scheme has undergone numerous revisions since the idea first emerged in the mid-2010s. Early ambitions for a largely new high-speed railway have gradually evolved into a programme combining new infrastructure with major upgrades to existing routes. Changes to the project have been closely linked to wider shifts in national transport policy, including decisions affecting HS2, the high-speed rail project that had its Manchester connection cancelled.

In recent years, the government’s wider Network North strategy has also reshaped how Northern Powerhouse Rail is expected to be delivered. Under current plans, the programme is intended to improve connectivity between major urban centres, including Liverpool, Manchester and Leeds, delivering faster journey times, additional rail capacity and upgraded stations across northern England.

Big on budget, small on progress

Despite the long gestation period, the NAO report highlights that the scheme remains relatively early in its development. The government has set an overall funding envelope of around £45 billion (€52.7bn), at 2025 prices, for the project’s future delivery phase. So far, around £410 million has been spent on development work, including route planning, design studies and programme preparation. Construction activity itself remains limited. There’s not much to see on the ground, reflecting the scale of planning and design required before major railway projects can move into full delivery.

The watchdog warned that cost estimates and delivery schedules will continue to evolve as the programme develops. It added that clear oversight will be required to ensure the project stays aligned with both national transport priorities and the wider economic ambitions behind the so-called “Northern Powerhouse”.

Complex governance structure

The report flagged up the complexity of the organisations involved in delivering the programme. The Department for Transport is responsible for overall policy direction, while infrastructure planning and delivery involve the infrastructure agency Network Rail, and the regional transport body Transport for the North.

The NAO said that coordination between these organisations, as well as local authorities and regional partners, will be critical if the programme is to achieve its intended economic benefits. The report emphasised that Northern Powerhouse Rail is more than simply a transport project. Its success, the auditors suggest, will depend on how effectively rail investment supports broader regional development goals across northern England.

Capacity implications for freight

Although the programme has largely been framed as a passenger connectivity scheme, the capacity increases proposed across the TransPennine Route Upgrade could also have implications for freight operations. The TRU is already underway, and it is something politicians have conflated with the NPR.

Additional rail capacity and upgraded routes linking northern ports and logistics hubs could potentially support greater rail freight flows across the region. Improved east–west corridors may help relieve pressure on existing routes and create opportunities for additional freight paths between ports, distribution centres and industrial areas. For the freight sector, the longer-term significance of Northern Powerhouse Rail may therefore lie not only in faster passenger journeys, but in the possibility of a more resilient and higher-capacity railway network across northern England.

While the scheme now appears to be entering a more settled phase after years of revisions, the auditors make clear that delivery will require sustained political commitment and effective programme management. Northern Powerhouse Rail could reshape economic geography across the region. However, the NAO’s latest assessment makes a clear warning. Turning long-standing ambition into operational railway infrastructure will remain a long-term undertaking, and no wavering of political ambition.

Significant capacity constraints

“We are very grateful to the public for playing such an active part in this consultation, said Katie Day, Strategy, Analysis and Communications Director at Transport for the North. “We’ve had some really positive sessions and some great questions about the Strategic Transport Plan. We’ve been able to acknowledge people’s concerns about transport connectivity, access, and infrastructure in the North. The next step for us is to analyse all the responses to gain a comprehensive view of consistent themes.”

Rail freight operations in Northern England typify the UK as a whole, with a health mix between intermodal and bulk cargo movements. The regional network interconnects major ports on both the east and west coasts, but has significant capacity constraints that hinder greater modal shift. The much explored Transpennine Route Upgrade goes someway towards addressing these issues, but responses to the consultation suggest that there is appetite for more work to be done on the regional network.

Hiatus before proposals

Facilitating movement of goods while catering to unique demands such as biomass transportation to Drax power station complex and servicing the construction of the High Speed Two (HS2) project, need sustained attention. Notably, the transportation of biomass from northern ports, particularly Teesport and Immingham, to the Drax Power Station complex is a prime flow that already requires a significant part of the available capacity. Without rail in the north, Drax, one of the largest power generators in the UK, would struggle to operate at capacity.

With around six months until the results of the consultation are considered and the final report published, there is a hiatus before TfN puts forward its proposals, and outlines the effects for the rail freight sector. “We must use the Plan as a means of ensuring the North has an efficient, high-quality, interconnected and decarbonised transport system”, said Katie Day. “[It must be that] by 2050 [the network in the North] connects people and places with services and opportunities, and champions for investment that will transform transport infrastructure for the North.”

Insufficient connectivity and unreliable infrastructure

Levelling Up is an initiative promoted by the UK government to redress the economic imbalance between the booming south and the underperforming north. Addressing one of the key challenges faced by the North of England, and answering the Levelling Up agenda, the TransPennine Route Upgrade program seeks to rectify decades of underinvestment in the region’s transport network. Insufficient connectivity and unreliable infrastructure have hindered economic progress, limiting growth opportunities, accessibility, and social mobility.

Several projects, significant in themselves, have already been achieved. Station upgrades, electrification improvements, track layout remodelling and signalling upgrades have already been signed off. There is however much more to be completed. Critics would argue that even in its present form, the project has been truncated. With the cancellation of a dedicated additional high speed route, sometimes dubbed “HS3”, the one-size-fits-all TransPennine Route will never have the capacity to cope with all the traffic everyone would like to throw at it.

Reliable, resilient, sustainable

“We still believe that the TRU should be wholly electrified and be fully gauge cleared to support the growth in freight movements from our Northern ports, so supporting the North to reach its true economical potential”, said Lord McLoughlin, Chair of Transport for the North, speaking after their meeting and referring back to the TfN’s own strategic rail report. “We are pleased with the programme’s progress which demonstrates how speaking with one voice on key transport investment decisions for the region is necessary if we are to drive inclusive and sustainable transformational economic growth and rebalance the UK economy. Our focus as a Board is on a rail service that is reliable, resilient, and environmentally sustainable and we will continue to bring forward credible and affordable long-term proposals for transforming the North’s transport network.”

The freight and logistics sector in the North plays a critical role in the UK economy. Around a third of goods entering the UK comes through Northern ports like Hull, Newcastle and Liverpool – all of them directly on the TransPennine Route. A quarter of all inland freight originates from the region. If it lives up to billing, the TRU program will deliver up to 15 additional freight train paths daily. If that’s enough to answer demand, then the revamped TransPennine Route will be rescoping the economic landscape of the North all by itself.

Significantly improved rail connectivity at ports

The long-term rail strategy for the North of England observes desirable minimum standards for freight, which set out how to enhance the delivery of improvement to the North’s rail network to accommodate the evolving needs of the freight market. The report recognises the importance of major enhancements like the Transpennine Route Upgrade and localised improvements to support longer and heavier trains, increased path availability, and additional gauge clearance.

The report emphasises improved connectivity at maritime centres, where large volumes of road traffic are already generated. Further significant modal shift to rail is required, observes TfN. “The five major ports in the North (Hull, the Humber Ports, Liverpool, Teesport, and Tyne) to be served by rail with gauge clearance allowing the latest generation of intermodal containers to be carried on standard wagons, enabling trains to operate unrestricted at the highest speed appropriate for the load”, notes the TfN Freight and Logistics Strategy.

A collaborative approach enables solutions

“Our statutory role and responsibilities remain unchanged and require us to consider the transport system in the round, focusing on issues and investment proposals that go beyond local authority boundaries”, says Martin Tugwell, the TfN Chief Executive. He recognises that the principal inland freight movers will continue to be road and rail without overlooking the extensive waterways of the region, which at one time were the dominant freight prime movers. “A collaborative approach enables solutions to be developed and implemented in a timely and cost-effective manner”, he notes.

TfN says it can lead the way and influence and shape the processes and programmes that operate at a national level. “We need to ensure we maintain an efficient multimodal freight network by improving connectivity gaps,” says Tugwell. “It should be integrated across all modes and is key to delivering our objectives and meeting the needs of industry, the economy, other transport users and the environment. Delivered holistically, this will allow the economy of the North to be more productive, efficient and sustainable.”

Surprising conclusions on road freight

While some observers may be surprised by the Freight Strategy conclusions on road transport, it does emphasise the extent of the latent market for rail freight in the North. The extent to which the sector’s market share has declined is in part down to the demise of traditional heavy industry in the region. However, by expressing support for the less polluting and more energy-efficient movement of goods on the transport network as a whole, there is a leading role for traditional rail freight in the future economy of the North. “Maximise the utilisation of rail, inland waterways and local distribution hubs to improve efficiency and support the modal shift of goods from road to rail and water”, says the report. “TfN expects to see optimal use of infrastructure for the efficient flow of goods on the major road network and the regional rail network.

Decarbonisation on the roads, says the report, is imperative and more easily achieved in the short term. Road hauliers may disagree. The cost of replacing already fuel-efficient trucks with new vehicles may not be as economically attractive as the alternative: government-funded railways electrification and redeployment of fleets to short-haul operations from those freight hubs proposed in the report. “The aim of this strategy is to undertake an overarching analysis of freight requirements across road, rail, port and inland waterways in the region”, says TfN. “[To] identify key constraints or challenges on the existing networks, and provide a list of possible areas of work including developing business cases for interventions and policy solutions that will best support economic growth and decarbonisation.”

Current and future requirements need investment

The Freight Logistics Strategy report looks at the broad picture for the North. Rail freight capacity developments at ports on both sides of Great Britain play into the hands of the new report. According to TfN analysis, more than a third of goods enter Great Britain through Northern ports, such as Liverpool, Hull and Sunderland. A quarter of all British moved freight starts or ends its journey in the North. By 2050 those goods could be worth more than thirty billion pounds to the North’s economy and employ more than 500,000 people.

“It is the first pan-Northern freight and logistics strategy of this type and complements our Strategic Transport Plan in developing a multimodal freight strategy for the North of England”, says TfN. “To see growth in the sector that meets the current and future requirements of our region and the UK economy, investment is required.[These are] to address three main areas of constraint across the road, rail and inland waterway networks: network capacity and capability, terminal availability and decarbonisation.”

Reduce the carbon impacts of freight and logistics

“Our Freight and Logistics Strategy, which covers road, rail and waterway freight, reveals the data that drives the sector and identifies the opportunities for decarbonising the sector”, said Martin Tugwell, the chief executive at Transport for the North. “The drive to reduce the carbon impacts of freight and logistics runs through this strategy. We have a clear vision and want to see continued growth in the sector that will help unlock the economic potential of the North. Our approach puts the needs of the user at the heart of our work for only in this way will our solutions deliver real results for businesses and communities.”

Uncertainty over the future of rail investment is still an issue for the region. Despite repeated announcements from the government in London, the ‘stop-go-redefined’ nature headline projects, such as Northern Powerhouse Rail, leaves business decision makers seeking flexible, rather than fixed solutions to their forecasted logistics requirements. These are issues the report seeks to address, but the major stumbling block of funding control remains unresolved.

Deliver sufficient capacity for enhanced freight

While development of the rail network is welcomed in the report, the abandonment of the optimal ‘Northern Powerhouse Rail’ programme is not ignored. The much vaunted Transpennine Route Upgrade has been questioned over its ability to deliver sufficient capacity for enhanced freight operations, as well as an intensified passenger timetable, and other routes, particularly a connection between Manchester and Leeds (the Diggle Route) remain lacking in significant investment.

“Northern Powerhouse Rail and other initiatives supported by TfN seek for more of the rail network in the North to be electrified”, says the report. “Network Rail has issued an interim programme business case for its Traction Decarbonisation Network Strategy. However, there is no certainty of funding for electrification of the wider network – and the routes used most by freight traffic (excepting sections of the Midland Main Line) tend to be lower priorities than routes used by frequent passenger services. Network capacity issues may also drive freight onto alternative routes to the West and East Coast main lines that currently have a still less pressing case for electrification investment.”

Crucial for business

Associated British Ports claims its four ports complex on the River Humber represents the largest port complex in the UK, handling 17 per cent of the nation’s trade, and is a vital link in the chain of moving freight around the country. Aside from 6,700 daily heavy goods vehicle movements, the Humber Ports generate around 150 trains every week.

“Last month saw the very welcome launch of Transport for the North’s consultation on their Future Freight and Logistics Strategy”, says Simon Bird. “All too often when contemplating how our transport networks should evolve, the focus for discussion is about the movement of people, but the movement of freight is essential to each of us, as individuals, in getting the things we need, but it is also crucial for businesses to access supplies, to export finished products, and to grow, and create jobs.”

Critical capacity shortages

The Transport for the North public consultation on Freight and Logistics Strategy for the North of England will address the challenges that lie ahead for the sector and the region. “The freight and logistics sector is vitally important for the North of England, with more than 33 per cent of goods entering through the region’s ports and 25 per cent of GB freight starting or ending in the North.

Rail features strongly in the consultation, and with ABP laying claim to the most rail-connected inventory of port operations around the UK, they are keen to make their voice heard. The rail sector faces many challenges and constraints, including a critical shortage of warehouse capacity, and TfN recognises the lack of reliable and efficient east-west connectivity across the Pennine mountains and disproportionate reliance on ports in the South of England.

Speed up engineering projects

Being rail connected, ABP wants to make more use of that capacity. “One way that we can make a significant contribution to decarbonising our work is to move a substantial proportion of those almost 7,000 lorries onto rail”, says Bird. “To make this cost-effective, however, we need freight to be given greater priority on rail than at present. Too often, freight trains are shunted into sidings to allow passenger trains to pass, and an increase to rail freight priorities will help.”

Bird also wants a faster completion of engineering projects, making the northern network, particularly the trans-Pennine routes, more robust and flexible. “We also think the rail gauge clearance and electrification work planned to be completed in 2026 could be brought forward to 2024″, he says. “Added to the speedy completion of the Manchester Rail Capacity study to help us to get more rail freight to Trafford Park, and we have a list of minor changes that could help a great deal.’ Bird alludes to the chronic congestion in the Castlefield Corridor, a frequent topic of conversation here and elsewhere.

Big ask includes road elopement

However, ABP’s big ask is road-based and seeks a second crossing of the Humber Estuary to be added to a proposed tidal barrier – a project already under consideration. Nevertheless, there is no mention of rail in this plan. Still, there is capacity already available on both river banks – a legacy of the much reduced heavy industry in the area.

Simon Bird says putting in a new crossing would reduce congestion in Hull, forge new economic ties between Grimsby and Hull, speed up the movement, and increase the reliability of freight, which could benefit business across the North. “The time is right to think boldly about the future of our transport”, he says. The message for the rail freight industry would appear to be that to figure in the TfN Freight and Logistics Strategy, it needs to be as bold as well in making its ‘big asks’.

He compared the congested M62 motorway, which links TfN headquarters in Manchester with Liverpool and Leeds, as the slow lane to economic growth in the twenty-first century. Having waited over a year and a half for the UK government’s integrated rail plan to be published, he questioned the progress on London’s stated intention to ‘level-up’ – an exercise in bringing the economic performance of the North in line with the booming South East and London.

Industry and government backing for development

Referring to this week’s Railway Industry Association sponsored report, published on Monday and reported here, Wood said the economic benefits of rail were clearly established. “We have just seen the latest information coming from the Oxford Economic Review that for every pound spent in rail, there is two pounds fifty coming back in terms of the gross value added”, he said.

Making reference to historic cutbacks, and the notorious Castlefield Corridor bottleneck through central Manchester, Wood added that the problem in the north of England is a lack of capacity. “We see freight trains trundling through Manchester Piccadilly. That is just not right in the twenty-first century. We see Bradford and Leeds eight miles [13 kilometres] apart and twenty-odd minutes on a train. That just cannot be right. Quite frankly we are still in the back lane.”

We need London to believe in us

Representing local government in the region, Mayor Tracy Brabin of the West Yorkshire Combined Authority (the community hosting the meeting in Leeds) said there was a great opportunity for transformational change resting on the shoulders of the government in London. She backed up Tim Wood, by noting that eighty-eight percent of journeys between Leeds and Bradford were made by road.

Mayor Brabin said that by far the most carbon-intensive phase of rail development was in the initial construction and that the overall emissions burden had to be considered within the context of the 120-year lifespan of the infrastructure. “We just need [London] to believe in us and to give us the power and the money to deliver. We have proved we can deliver on time, on budget. We just need the political word from the government.”

Ground breaking work in rail logistics

Maggie Simpson, director general of the Rail Freight Group, made the strongest case for linking economic development in the North with development and a shift to rail freight. She put the long-term benefits into perspective by addressing current issues facing the regional, national and global economies. “We have seen the supply chain challenged in the last two years”, she said. “Everything from toilet rolls, to carbon dioxide, to semiconductors, to the current demand for natural gas. How can we help minimise the impact on the global scale if you are today an exporter sitting in Manchester and you wish to send your goods away but you can’t find an HGV [truck] driver?”

Simpson said that options for transport by rail were limited. With the rail network at capacity and further expansion proposals stalled, inefficient road transport was the only option available. Simpson did however say that efforts were being made. “To help decarbonise freight, Transport for the North themselves have been doing some groundbreaking work on rail logistics, exploring potential for the region to help businesses do better.”

New Industrial Revolution coming down the tracks

While both the national infrastructure agency Network Rail, and the company delivering the new railway between London and Birmingham – HS2 Limited – claim their part in progressing the cause for rail freight by installing more capacity overall, such as the recently completed signalling upgrade which serves the Castlefield Corridor, Simpson says there are fundamental issues that need a step-change in attitude and investment to put the North into a position of rail-based commerce – a state of affairs that existed in the early part of the Industrial Revolution, and would, in itself be just as revolutionary.

Simpson identified what she sees as the key issues. “I don’t want to see freight trains trundling through the Castlefield Corridor, either”, she said. I want to see them coming through at line speed. Can we look at choices of how we move freight across the region in a pragmatic and sensible way. How can Transport for the North help other devolved and subnational bodies, because freight is not measured at local level. These are global supply chains, and we need to look quite rightly and properly at what we do in this region to improve transport for the benefits of all users.”

Transport for the North have made their Annual Conference available online. As the powerhouse of the Industrial Revolution, the North of England very much shaped the modern world. It did so on the back of the first rail network. If the area is to be revolutionised again, then it is to the technology of the railway that the region looks to again for the way forward.

Network Rail speeding up the project

Network Rail is now finalising detailed designs that will improve sections of the railway between Bamford station and Jaggers Lane Bridge in Hathersage, and around Dore & Totley station, where a second platform will also be added. Work is expected to begin in 2022 and will be completed in 2023. Network Rail has already started work on the design stages of the programme. 

The infrastructure management agency recently began implementing its ‘project SPEED’ structural streamlining, intended specifically to make projects like this more efficient and faster to implement. That has met with approval from government sources. “I am delighted to confirm 137 million for this scheme to remove bottlenecks on the Hope Valley line, transforming journeys between Sheffield and Manchester, two dynamic Northern Powerhouse cities”, said rail minister Chris Heaton-Harris. “We are committed to levelling up infrastructure across the North, and these important upgrades will make a huge difference, providing the punctual, reliable services, as we build back better from COVID-19.”

Byword for delays

Capacity between Sheffield and Manchester has been an ongoing issue for decades. The controversial closure of alternative routes, as part of the rationalisation of the 1960s, limited rail’s ability to compete for freight traffic, at the very same time as a huge motorway project across the mountains that separate the two cities was underway. There has been significant lobby from the freight sector ever since, to improve the remaining routes, particularly the Hope Valley, which has become a by-word for the capacity issues that affect the North of England.

“This line has suffered for years with slower trains holding up faster ones, leading to cancellations, delays, and unreliable services”, said David Hoggarth, the strategic rail director at Transport for the North, the, the sub-national body charged with overall improvements to communications links between the communities of the region. “It currently has some of the slowest train speeds on the North’s rail network”, he observed. “It’s great news that investment will now go into this vital corridor, whilst longer-term upgrades as part of Northern Powerhouse Rail are finalised.”

Passing loops and collaboration

Initially, the investment will help remove some of the key rail bottlenecks on the line by providing two vital freight passing loops, and a second line through Dore and Totley station on the western edge of Sheffield. The intention is that the additional capacity will provide for improved passenger frequency, without compromising freight traffic, which will be more efficiently handled under the revised layout.

Network Rail say they are already engaged in signalling design work at the same time as the tendering process, and talking to both passenger train operators and rail freight companies about changes to the network that may be needed during construction. 

The three bodies – the Department for Transport, Transport for the North, and Network Rail – are collaborating as part of the wider Manchester Recovery Taskforce, which is looking at a range of options over the coming decade to improve performance in and around Manchester. These include the already implemented Ordsall Chord just west of Manchester Piccadilly station,  and the massive congestion issue of the Castlefield Corridor, which links that project with the Hope Valley line. 

Works also tackle bottlenecks

The Departement for Transport also said work is underway to tackle the bottlenecks at either end of the route, without which the potential of the upgrades cannot be fulfilled. For freight, this would primarily mean a solution to the chronic congestion of the Castlefield Corridor in Manchester – a short urban section of twin track in the city centre, which is regarded as the primary pinch point in the entire region.

However, the Rail Freight Group, representing the industry in the UK, gave a cautious welcome. They said that with funding now committed to the project, an Integrated Rail Plan will consider how freight capacity can be provided as part of the core scheme.

Acceleration called for

With the plan not due till December, Rail Freight Group is urging the UK Government to ensure that freight enhancements to deliver capacity and gauge clearance are accelerated, so that they can be delivered as part of the already committed scheme. Most of these enhancements have already been studied and scoped in concept, says RFG.

Ports and businesses across the North of England have been working with RFG to make the case for improved rail freight links on the Transpennine routes. They say new rail freight services will support post-pandemic recovery, and help develop new trade routes post Brexit, delivering economic growth in the region. They also say rail freight will help deliver the green recovery, reducing carbon and air quality emissions.

Mike Hogg, RFG Northern Representative, was pleased to see Government has listened to businesses who have clearly set out their aspirations to use more rail freight as part of their distribution networks. “This project is vital in ensuring that those companies can deliver for the economy of the North, whilst also decarbonising their transport links”, he said.

Mayor of Manchester calls it a gear change

“This feels like a gear change from the government in the delivery of transport improvements in the North of England”, said Andy Burnham, the Mayor of Greater Manchester, who is a keen lobbyist for improved transport infrastructure across the region. “I welcome the new drive that the Transport Secretary is bringing to this.”

There is also to be a new body added to the administrative roles within the region. The Northern Transport Acceleration Council will hold its first meeting in September and will be made up of mayors and council leaders with the Transport Secretary as chair. A government statement says it will work closely with the Northern Powerhouse Growth Body. The statement does not make clear its relationship with the established statutory sub-national transport body, Transport for the North. However, the involvement of the Transport Minister as chair of the Council clearly steps up the agenda from Manchester to Westminster.