City Line (Merseyrail)
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The
Merseytravel Merseytravel is the passenger transport executive, responsible for the coordination of public transport in the Liverpool City Region in North West England. Merseytravel was established on 1 December 1969 as the Merseyside Passenger Transpor ...
City Line is shown in red on the Merseytravel-produced
Merseyrail Merseyrail is a commuter rail network serving the Liverpool City Region and adjacent areas of Cheshire and Lancashire. Merseyrail operates 66 railway stations across two lines – the Northern Line and Wirral Line, which are dedicated electri ...
map. The City Line is 'shared' commuter train services that terminate at
Liverpool Lime Street Liverpool Lime Street is a terminus railway station and the main station serving the city centre of Liverpool. Opened in August 1836, it is the oldest still-operating grand terminus mainline station in the world. A branch of the West Coast ...
. When a commuter train, not operated by Merseyrail, enters the
Liverpool City Region The Liverpool City Region is a combined authority region of England, centred on Liverpool, incorporating the local authority district boroughs of Halton, Knowsley, Sefton, St Helens, and Wirral. The region is in the historic counties of ...
it essentially becomes a City Line service with stations given Merseyrail's yellow branding, signage and ticketing. Services on the City Line are provided by Northern,
Transpennine Express TransPennine Express (TPE), legally First TransPennine Express Limited, is a British train operating company owned by FirstGroup that operates the TransPennine Express franchise. It runs regional and inter-city rail services between the major ci ...
,
Avanti West Coast Avanti West Coast is a train operating company in the United Kingdom owned by FirstGroup (70%) and Trenitalia (30%) that operates the West Coast Partnership franchise. During November 2016, the Department for Transport (DfT) announced the Inter ...
,
East Midlands Railway Abellio East Midlands Limited, trading as East Midlands Railway (EMR), is a train operating company in England, owned by Abellio, and is the current operator of the East Midlands franchise. History In March 2017, the Department for Transport a ...
,
Transport for Wales Transport for Wales (TfW; cy, Trafnidiaeth Cymru; cy, TrC, label=none) is a not-for-profit company owned by the Welsh Government and managed at arms length by its appointed board. TfW oversees the Transport for Wales Group (TfW Group) consi ...
, and
West Midlands Trains West Midlands Trains (WMT) is a train operating company in the United Kingdom. It operates passenger trains on the West Midlands franchise between London and the English Midlands under two trade names: West Midlands Railway (WMR) (within the ...
. The line covers the Liverpool City Region sections of the: *
Liverpool–Wigan line The Liverpool–Wigan line is a railway line in the north-west of England, running between Liverpool Lime Street and Wigan North Western via St Helens Central station. The line is a part of the electrified Merseyrail Liverpool to Wigan City L ...
; * The two routes of the
Liverpool–Manchester lines There once were four direct railway routes between Liverpool and Manchester in the North West of England; only two remain, the two centre routes of the four. The most northerly and the most southerly of the four routes are no longer direct li ...
; * The Liverpool-Crewe Line; * The Liverpool-Chester line via Runcorn; * The Liverpool-Blackpool line.https://www.merseyrail.org/media/1300639/city-line-book-1-from-15th-december-2019-to-16th-may-2020.pdf


History

The City Line can trace its origins back to the dawn of the railway era, as it incorporates most of the route of the
Liverpool and Manchester Railway The Liverpool and Manchester Railway (L&MR) was the first inter-city railway in the world. It opened on 15 September 1830 between the Lancashire towns of Liverpool and Manchester in England. It was also the first railway to rely exclusively ...
, opened in 1830 and including Broad Green Station, the oldest operating station in the world. Other early railway companies whose lines are now part of the City Line include the
Cheshire Lines Committee The Cheshire Lines Committee (CLC) was formed in the 1860s and became the second-largest joint railway in Great Britain. The committee, which was often styled the Cheshire Lines Railway, operated of track in the then counties of Lancashire a ...
and the
London and North Western Railway The London and North Western Railway (LNWR, L&NWR) was a British railway company between 1846 and 1922. In the late 19th century, the L&NWR was the largest joint stock company in the United Kingdom. In 1923, it became a constituent of the Lo ...
. These disparate local railway services were not marketed under a common name until 1972, when
Merseyside PTE Merseytravel is the passenger transport executive, responsible for the coordination of public transport in the Liverpool City Region in North West England. Merseytravel was established on 1 December 1969 as the Merseyside Passenger Transport ...
introduced the Merseyrail brand for services which were operated by
British Rail British Railways (BR), which from 1965 traded as British Rail, was a state-owned company that operated most of the overground rail transport in Great Britain from 1948 to 1997. It was formed from the nationalisation of the Big Four British rai ...
on its behalf. The PTE applied the City Line name to local services out of Liverpool's main station at Lime Street. Around this time, ambitious plans were floated to electrify parts of the City Line and incorporate it into the
Northern line The Northern line is a London Underground line that runs from North London to South London. It is printed in black on the Tube map. The Northern line is unique on the Underground network in having two different routes through central London, two ...
, via the
Wapping Tunnel Wapping or Edge Hill Tunnel in Liverpool, England, is a tunnel route from the Edge Hill junction in the east of the city to the Liverpool south end docks formerly used by trains on the Liverpool-Manchester line railway. The tunnel alignm ...
from Edge Hill to
Liverpool Central Liverpool Central railway station in Liverpool, England, forms a central hub of the Merseyrail network, being on both the Northern Line and the Wirral Line. The station is located underground on two levels, below the site of a former mainline ...
. However, after work started, they were abandoned, and to this day the suburbs of eastern Liverpool have no direct route to other suburbs of the city without changing to the underground network at Lime Street. In the 1990s, as part of the Government's rail privatisation, the City Line services became part of the North Western Trains franchise (later taken over by
FirstGroup FirstGroup plc is a British multi-national transport group, based in Aberdeen, Scotland.First North Western First North Western was a train operating company in England owned by FirstGroup that operated the North West Regional Railways franchise from March 1997 until December 2004. History In the lead up to the privatisation of British Rail, the Nor ...
). In 2004, the First North Western franchise was merged with that of neighbouring train company
Arriva Trains Northern Arriva Trains Northern was a train operating company in England owned by Arriva that operated the Regional Railways North East franchise from March 1997 until December 2004. Arriva resumed operating Northern train services again on 1 April 2016 ...
to create a new franchise covering the north of England. The new franchise was won by
Northern Rail Northern Rail, branded as Northern, was an English train operating company owned by Serco-Abellio that operated the Northern Rail franchise from 2004 until 2016. It was the primary passenger train operator in Northern England, and operated th ...
, owned by the
Serco-Abellio Serco-Abellio (formerly Serco-NedRailways) is a joint venture between Serco and Abellio, each owning 50%. The joint venture formed and owns one train operating company in Northern England. It has operated the Merseyrail franchise since July ...
consortium (who, coincidentally, had been named as the operators of the Merseyrail Electrics franchise a year earlier).


Description

The City Line comprises routes are shared with local and inter-city express services. The lines which make up the City Line are: *
Liverpool–Wigan line The Liverpool–Wigan line is a railway line in the north-west of England, running between Liverpool Lime Street and Wigan North Western via St Helens Central station. The line is a part of the electrified Merseyrail Liverpool to Wigan City L ...
(and onward to Preston via the
West Coast Main Line The West Coast Main Line (WCML) is one of the most important railway corridors in the United Kingdom, connecting the major cities of London and Glasgow with branches to Birmingham, Liverpool, Manchester and Edinburgh. It is one of the busiest ...
) *
Liverpool–Manchester lines There once were four direct railway routes between Liverpool and Manchester in the North West of England; only two remain, the two centre routes of the four. The most northerly and the most southerly of the four routes are no longer direct li ...
(Middle and Southern Routes, including the branch to Warrington Bank Quay) *
Crewe–Liverpool line The Crewe–Liverpool line is a railway line in North West England that diverges from the West Coast Main Line at Weaver Junction north of and runs to via and Liverpool South Parkway. History The line was built in stages by the Liverpool an ...
(and onward to
Birmingham New Street Birmingham New Street is the largest and busiest of the three main railway stations in Birmingham city centre, England, and a central hub of the British railway system. It is a major destination for Avanti West Coast services from , and vi ...
via the
West Coast Main Line The West Coast Main Line (WCML) is one of the most important railway corridors in the United Kingdom, connecting the major cities of London and Glasgow with branches to Birmingham, Liverpool, Manchester and Edinburgh. It is one of the busiest ...
)


Services

Services on the City Line are provided by Northern,
Transpennine Express TransPennine Express (TPE), legally First TransPennine Express Limited, is a British train operating company owned by FirstGroup that operates the TransPennine Express franchise. It runs regional and inter-city rail services between the major ci ...
,
Avanti West Coast Avanti West Coast is a train operating company in the United Kingdom owned by FirstGroup (70%) and Trenitalia (30%) that operates the West Coast Partnership franchise. During November 2016, the Department for Transport (DfT) announced the Inter ...
,
East Midlands Railway Abellio East Midlands Limited, trading as East Midlands Railway (EMR), is a train operating company in England, owned by Abellio, and is the current operator of the East Midlands franchise. History In March 2017, the Department for Transport a ...
,
Transport for Wales Transport for Wales (TfW; cy, Trafnidiaeth Cymru; cy, TrC, label=none) is a not-for-profit company owned by the Welsh Government and managed at arms length by its appointed board. TfW oversees the Transport for Wales Group (TfW Group) consi ...
, and
West Midlands Trains West Midlands Trains (WMT) is a train operating company in the United Kingdom. It operates passenger trains on the West Midlands franchise between London and the English Midlands under two trade names: West Midlands Railway (WMR) (within the ...
. Monday to Saturday daytimes, most stations are served by a train every half-hour on core sections of route. Some smaller stations are served only by one train per hour. Services are less frequent in the evenings. Timetables are produced by Merseytravel. Typical off-peak weekday service is as follows:


Branding

Due to the division between local transport operator
Merseytravel Merseytravel is the passenger transport executive, responsible for the coordination of public transport in the Liverpool City Region in North West England. Merseytravel was established on 1 December 1969 as the Merseyside Passenger Transpor ...
and regional franchise operator
Northern Trains Northern Trains, branded as Northern, (legally Northern Trains Limited) is a State-owned enterprises of the United Kingdom, publicly owned train operating company in England. It is owned by DfT OLR Holdings for the Department for Transport (DfT) ...
, the City Line is inconsistently branded. Timetables published by Merseytravel displayed at stations use the City Line branding referring to several operators, whilst Northern Trains (and other operators using parts of the same routes) do not refer to the line in their own publicity or onboard trains. Additionally, main line stations operated by Merseytravel carry
Merseyrail Merseyrail is a commuter rail network serving the Liverpool City Region and adjacent areas of Cheshire and Lancashire. Merseyrail operates 66 railway stations across two lines – the Northern Line and Wirral Line, which are dedicated electri ...
branding, despite being separate from the electric
rapid transit Rapid transit or mass rapid transit (MRT), also known as heavy rail or metro, is a type of high-capacity public transport generally found in urban areas. A rapid transit system that primarily or traditionally runs below the surface may be c ...
/ commuter network and being absent from some official Merseyrail maps. This is also true of some stations of the
Transport for Wales Transport for Wales (TfW; cy, Trafnidiaeth Cymru; cy, TrC, label=none) is a not-for-profit company owned by the Welsh Government and managed at arms length by its appointed board. TfW oversees the Transport for Wales Group (TfW Group) consi ...
operated Borderlands line, which is not branded as a Merseyrail service on any maps published by Merseytravel, yet stations inside Merseyside are branded Merseyrail.


Trains

There were 17 Class 142 diesel powered Pacer units painted in the PTE's yellow livery, ostensibly for use on City Line services. However, they are not dedicated to Merseyside operations and can often be seen working on other
Northern Rail Northern Rail, branded as Northern, was an English train operating company owned by Serco-Abellio that operated the Northern Rail franchise from 2004 until 2016. It was the primary passenger train operator in Northern England, and operated th ...
services outside the Merseyside area. Conversely, Class 142s in other liveries could previously be frequently seen working Lime Street City Line services. Some longer-distance City Line services are diagrammed for Class 150 or Class 156 Sprinter units. On 28 February 2007 Merseytravel announced a new deal with
Northern Rail Northern Rail, branded as Northern, was an English train operating company owned by Serco-Abellio that operated the Northern Rail franchise from 2004 until 2016. It was the primary passenger train operator in Northern England, and operated th ...
and
Angel Trains Angel Trains is a British rolling stock company (ROSCO). Together with Eversholt Rail Group and Porterbrook, it is one of the three original ROSCOs. Angel Trains was established in March 1994 as part of the privatisation of British Rail. In No ...
, which would see four Pacers taken out of service and replaced by six Class 156 units. The higher capacity of the 156s will assist in tackling overcrowding. This new arrangement is expected to begin with the May 2007 timetable.


Future


Electrification of the City Line

Formerly the only section of City Line route electrified was between Lime Street and Liverpool South Parkway, which is used by Virgin and London Midland Electric Multiple Units. The line from Liverpool to Manchester via Newton-le-Willows was electrified, along with the
Liverpool–Wigan line The Liverpool–Wigan line is a railway line in the north-west of England, running between Liverpool Lime Street and Wigan North Western via St Helens Central station. The line is a part of the electrified Merseyrail Liverpool to Wigan City L ...
, opening in early 2015. Four electrified tracks are operative from Broad Green Station to Huyton Station. This is to allow a fast uninterrupted service from Liverpool to Manchester and slower electric urban trains to operate on segregated tracks from Liverpool to Wigan. Merseyrail City Line trains run on this section of track.
Northern Trains Northern Trains, branded as Northern, (legally Northern Trains Limited) is a State-owned enterprises of the United Kingdom, publicly owned train operating company in England. It is owned by DfT OLR Holdings for the Department for Transport (DfT) ...
operate the trains on this electrified section of tracks.


Bootle branch line

The
Canada Dock Branch The Canada Dock Branch is a 4-mile 59 chain (7.62 kilometre) long railway line in Liverpool, England. The line's route is from the large Edge Hill rail junction in the east of Liverpool to Seaforth Dock to the north. The line was originally ...
line, also known as the Bootle branch line, is a line running from Edge Hill Junction in the east of the city in a long curve to Canada Dock in the north of the city. The line meets Merseyrail's Northern Line at a junction between and stations. The line's last remaining passenger services were withdrawn in 1977, however the line remains busy with freight to
Seaforth Dock Seaforth Dock (also known as the Royal Seaforth Dock) is a purpose-built dock and container terminal, on the River Mersey, England, at Seaforth, to the north of Liverpool. As part of the Port of Liverpool and Liverpool Freeport, it is operated ...
and its container terminal and
Liverpool2 Liverpool2 is a container terminal extension adjoining the River Mersey in Seaforth, Merseyside. The extension, built by Peel Ports, officially opened on 4 November 2016 and is an expansion of the Seaforth Dock container terminal. Developmen ...
container terminal. If the line was reopened to passengers, it would allow the reopening of stations along its length: , , ,
Tuebrook Tuebrook is a North-East area of Liverpool, England. At the 2001 census the population was 14,490. Toponymy The origin of the name may be Tew Brook, a tributary of the Alt. The brook itself is now almost entirely piped or culverted, with the l ...
, and . The line from Edge Lane would continue through to Edge Hill station and terminate at Lime Street. Network Rail have investigated options for the Canada Dock Branch in their Route Utilisation Strategy for Merseyside and have concluded that the expected benefits do not justify the investment in new infrastructure. It had been suggested that
Liverpool F.C. Liverpool Football Club is a professional football club based in Liverpool, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. Founded in 1892, the club joined the Football League the following year and has p ...
could assist in funding the reopening of this line to provide a direct link to their proposed extension of the
Anfield Anfield is a football stadium in Anfield, Liverpool, Merseyside, England, which has a seating capacity of 53,394, making it the seventh largest football stadium in England. It has been the home of Liverpool F.C. since their formation in 1892. ...
stadium. The Department for Transport's Rail electrification document of July 2009, states that the route to Liverpool Docks will be electrified. The Canada Dock Branch Line is the only line into the docks. From the document: :''70. Electrification of this route will offer electric haulage options for freight.'' :''There will be an alternative route to Liverpool docks for electrically-operated freight trains, and better opportunities of electrified access to the proposed freight terminal at Parkside near Newton-le-Willows.'' The electrification of this line would greatly assist in recommissioning passenger trains, as costs would be reduced.


References


External links


Merseytravel
{{Railway lines in North West England Rail transport in Liverpool Railway lines in North West England Rail transport in Merseyside