The Stafford–Manchester line is a major railway line branching from the West Coast Main Line serving

Stafford Stafford () is a market town and the county town of Staffordshire, England. It is located about south of Stoke-on-Trent, north of Wolverhampton, and northwest of Birmingham. The town had a population of 71,673 at the 2021–2022 United Kingd ...

, Stone,

Stoke-on-Trent Stoke-on-Trent (often abbreviated to Stoke) is a city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Staffordshire, England. It has an estimated population of 259,965 as of 2022, making it the largest settlement in Staffordshire ...

, Kidsgrove, Congleton,

Macclesfield Macclesfield () is a market town and civil parish in the unitary authority of Cheshire East, Cheshire, England. It is sited on the River Bollin and the edge of the Cheshire Plain, with Macclesfield Forest to its east; the town lies south of Ma ...

, Cheadle Hulme,

Stockport Stockport is a town in Greater Manchester, England, south-east of Manchester, south-west of Ashton-under-Lyne and north of Macclesfield. The River Goyt, Rivers Goyt and River Tame, Greater Manchester, Tame merge to create the River Mersey he ...

and

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

Train services

Avanti West Coast

Avanti West Coast operate inter-city services between London Euston and Manchester Piccadilly, via the Colwich spur. Some services between London Euston and Manchester Piccadilly travel along the Stone to Colwich line, thereby by-passing Stafford.

CrossCountry

CrossCountry CrossCountry (legal name XC Trains Limited) is a British train operating company owned by Arriva UK Trains, operating the current CrossCountry franchise. The CrossCountry franchise was restructured by the Department for Transport (DfT) in 2006, ...

services operate between Birmingham New Street / The South and Manchester Piccadilly. Between Cheadle Hulme (where it joins the Crewe–Manchester line) and Manchester, the line forms part of Network Rail Route 20.

London Northwestern Railway

Local services between Stafford and Stoke-on-Trent, calling at Stone, are operated by West Midlands Trains; they are branded London Northwestern Railway. They are operated as an hourly service between Stafford and Crewe. Between 2004 and 2008, there was no stopping service on the route, with a replacement bus service taking its place. However Wedgwood and Barlaston stations are still without a train service, although they were never officially closed and are still served by rail-replacement bus services. Norton Bridge also lost its services at the same time but was formally closed in December 2017, after 13 years without a rail service.

Northern Trains

Frequent local services between Stoke-on-Trent and Manchester are operated by

Northern Trains Northern Trains, Trade name, trading as Northern, is a British train operating company that operates Commuter rail, commuter and Inter-city rail, medium-distance intercity services in the North of England. It is owned by DfT Operator for the Dep ...

East Midlands Railway

The Derby to Crewe Line, operated by East Midlands Railway, shares the Stafford to Manchester Line between Stoke-on-Trent and Kidsgrove.

History

The line was completed in 1848. It incorporated the main line of the North Staffordshire Railway, from the junction with the London and North Western Railway at Norton Bridge, via its principal station at Stoke-on-Trent, to Macclesfield, where it made a running junction, again with the London and North Western Railway. The LNWR had its own station at Macclesfield Hibel Road, which was closed by British Rail in 1960. The North Staffordshire Railway became part of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway in 1923.

Electrification

The line was electrified at 25 kV AC, using overhead wires under the BR 1955 Modernisation Plan.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stafford-Manchester line Rail transport in Cheshire Rail transport in Greater Manchester Rail transport in Staffordshire Rail transport in Stoke-on-Trent Railway lines opened in 1848 Railway lines in the West Midlands (region) Railway lines in North West England