UK unveils £45 billion Northern Powerhouse Rail programme

The programme is meant to cut journey times and increase train frequencies; the trip from Liverpool to Manchester Airport currently takes 1 hour 25 minutes for 46 km. A decision on a new station in Bradford was due by summer 2026; the report gives no start of construction or completion dates for the lines.

The UK government has presented its plans for Northern Powerhouse Rail (NPR), a £45 billion (about €52 billion) programme meant to link the north of England faster and more frequently with new and upgraded lines and station rebuilds. Its core is a new Liverpool–Manchester line with new or remodelled stations at Manchester Airport, Manchester Piccadilly and Warrington Bank Quay (lower level); it also includes the already approved platform extension at Manchester Airport (£115 million), better links between Manchester, Leeds, Bradford and Sheffield with a new Rotherham Gateway station, further study of the Leamside Line and a feasibility study for a new Birmingham–Manchester line that is not a revival of HS2 Phase 2. For Bradford, a decision on a new through station was due by summer 2026, and the city council expected it to take about 10 to 15 years (LOK Report, 16 Jan 2026; Bradford: 20 Jan 2026; second source: GOV.UK, 14 Jan 2026).