Improving transport connectivity in the North West

Buses

Most parts of north-west England have a deregulated bus network where routes, frequency and fares are set by private bus operators. This is also true of the rest of Great Britain, except London, which was exempt from the deregulated model introduced under the Transport Act 1985. 

More information on how buses are managed can be found in the Library briefing Bus policy in England.

Franchising

The exception to deregulated bus management in the north-west is in Greater Manchester, where there is a new bus franchising system in place. This means that Greater Manchester Combined Authority specifies bus routes, services, fares and vehicle standards. Operators then compete through a tendering process for the right to operate services and, if successful, receive a set fee for doing so. This is like the franchising system that has been in place in London for decades.

Greater Manchester’s bus franchising scheme is branded the ‘Bee Network’. It was introduced in phases from 2023, and by January 2025 covered the entire Manchester city-region. The Bee Network also incorporates Metrolink trams, and it is anticipated that it will eventually include some rail services too.

Liverpool City Region Combined Authority also has plans to introduce bus franchising in phases starting in 2026.

Buses bill and funding

Under the Bus Services Act 2017, only mayoral combined authorities have been able to introduce franchising without approval from central government. The government’s Bus Services (No. 2) Bill, currently in the House of Lords, will give other types of local authority the option to introduce franchising more easily too. The Lords Library briefing on the Bus Services (No. 2) Bill has more information.

At the 2024 Budget the government allocated £955 million for the year 2025-26 to “support, improve and protect crucial bus services across [England]”. Allocations by local authority have been published online.

Committee inquiry

In November 2024 the Transport Committee launched an inquiry on Buses connecting communities which is looking at how bus services in more rural areas might be improved.

Rail

Train operating companies

The primary train operators in the north west of England are:

• Avanti West Coast, which operates intercity train services between London Euston and destinations in the north west, including Liverpool, Manchester, Preston, Blackpool and Carlisle.
• Merseyrail, which operates local train services serving Liverpool, the Wirral and the surrounding areas.
• Northern, which operates local train services across the north of England.
• TransPennine Express, which operates intercity services linking Liverpool, Manchester, Preston and Carlisle with Leeds, York, Newcastle, Sheffield, Glasgow and Edinburgh.

Northern and TransPennine Express are in public ownership, and are operated by the DfT Operator (formerly the Operator of Last Resort).

Devolution of rail services in England

In the 2024 King’s Speech, the government set out its plan to introduce a Railways Bill. This would create Great British Railways (GBR), a single body responsible for the management of the rail network and the delivery of passenger services.

On 18 February 2025, the government launched a consultation on its plans for the Railways Bill. This set out further information on its plans for devolution on rail services in England:

In its role as the ‘directing mind’, Great British Railways (GBR) will bring track and train back together and plan services on a whole-system basis to better deliver for passengers, taxpayers, and freight customers and to unlock growth. This will include working closely with devolved leaders and local partners, drawing on their experiences and expertise. But it is also vital that devolved governments and Mayoral Strategic Authorities (MSAs) […] can integrate local railways with other transport modes. They need the ability to create unified transport networks that serve their cities and regions, much like Transport for London – a model that is now being developed in MSAs across England.

Other tiers of local government in England will benefit from empowered local GBR business units that are outward-facing and engage local authorities on their priorities and Local Transport Plans. This will include working with sub-national transport bodies (STBs) on matters of wider regional interest.

This consultation followed on from the government’s English Devolution White Paper (16 December 2024), which set out its plans to give strategic authorities and mayors greater control over rail services in their region.

Devolution of rail services in Greater Manchester

In January 2025, the Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham set out plans to integrate eight rail routes into Greater Manchester’s existing Bee Network by 2028.

The plans would also see improved fare integration between rail, bus and tram; improvements to stations and trains; increased service levels; and accessibility improvements at rail stations.

Rail projects in the north west of England

There are a number of significant rail projects which are or may impact rail services in the north west. These include

• TransPennine Route Upgrade: a programme to upgrade the railway line between Manchester, Huddersfield, Leeds and York.
• Northern Powerhouse Rail: a programme of strategic rail investments which will build on the TransPennine Route Upgrade to further improve connectivity between cities and towns in the North of England, including Liverpool, Manchester, Leeds and York. This would include a new railway line linking Warrington and Yorkshire via Manchester.
• Midlands-North West Rail Link [PDF]: following the cancellation of the HS2 line north of the West Midlands, the mayors of Manchester and the West Midlands published a report which recommended the construction of a new railway line between Lichfield and High Legh, where it would connect to the planned Northern Powerhouse Rail line between Warrington and Manchester.

Roads

Road network and devolution

The English Devolution White Paper (16 December 2024), also set out plans to give strategic authorities a key role in coordinating their road network. While local roads (including maintenance of local roads) would remain the responsibility of the current highway authority (usually a county or unitary council) unless agreed otherwise, Mayoral Strategic Authorities will be able to set up and coordinate a Key Route Network on behalf of the Mayor (similar to red routes in London), allowing the most important local roads to be strategically managed.  

Local road maintenance funding

Prior to the 2024 General Election, Labour committed to fixing an additional one million potholes across England in each year of the next parliament (PDF, p33). In the October 2024 Budget, the government said it would provide 50% more funding for local roads maintenance compared to 2024/25.

Road maintenance funding allocations are awarded to individual highway authorities and combined authorities. Allocations by local authority are available in DfT transparency data.

Integrated transport strategy

Between November 2024 and February 2025, the government ran a call for evidence on a Integrated National Transport Strategy. In a November 2024 press release the government said the strategy would be focussed on improving integration between transport modes, citing the Bee Network in Greater Manchester and Transport for London as positive existing examples.