Northern Trains Explained

Northern
Franchise:Northern
Start Year: 
End Year: 
Nameforarea:region
Regions:
Secregions:
Parent Company:DfT OLR Holdings
Marks:NT[1]
Predecessor:Arriva Rail North
Headquarters:York[2]
Fleet:368
Stations:474[3]

Northern Trains,[4] trading as Northern, is a British train operating company owned by DfT OLR Holdings for the Department for Transport (DfT), after the previous operator Arriva Rail North had its franchise terminated at the end of February 2020.

The company commenced operating the Northern franchise on 1 March 2020, taking over from Arriva Rail North. The prior operator had its franchise terminated early by the DfT in January 2020 amid widespread dissatisfaction over its performance, particularly in respect of poorly implemented timetable changes. The DfT had opted to hand the operation of the franchise over to the operator of last resort. At the commencement of operations, Northern publicly stated that its immediate aims were to improve service reliability and to proceed with the introduction of new rolling stock. For the latter, both the Class 195 diesel multiple units and Class 331 electric multiple units were brought into service fully during December 2020.

Services have been disrupted by wider events, particularly the COVID-19 pandemic. Northern is also being affected by the 2022–2024 United Kingdom railway strikes, the largest national rail strikes in the UK in three decades.

History

Background

In December 2015, the Department for Transport (DfT) awarded Arriva a contract to operate the Northern franchise as Arriva Rail North. It commenced in April 2016 and was originally scheduled to run until March 2025.[5] [6] Within two years, the franchise was being widely criticised, in particular for troubled implementation of a new timetable in May 2018 that resulted in widespread delays and cancellations.[7] [8] Later in 2018 performance continued to suffer, with many passengers protesting and a reduced service on Saturdays due to industrial action.[9] [10] [11] [12] By November 2018, Arriva were re-evaluating their future involvement in the franchise due to a combination of declining passenger numbers as a result of the chaotic May 2018 timetable change and increasing compensation claims as a result of falling punctuality.[13]

In June 2019, the DfT's operator of last resort, DfT OLR Holdings, conducted due diligence into the franchise believing the both operational and financial performance to be "unsustainable".[14] In October 2019, the Secretary of State for Transport, Grant Shapps, issued a request for proposals to incumbent operator Arriva and the operator of last resort, which would result in termination of the franchise with either Arriva to be awarded a short-term management contract or the operator of last resort to take over.[15] In January 2020, Shapps publicly criticised Arriva's operation of the Northern franchise and suggested that the Government may step in to revoke its franchise agreement, bluntly referring to the service as "completely unacceptable".[16]

On 29 January 2020, the DfT announced its decision to terminate Arriva Rail North as operator of the franchise, to be taken over by the DfT's operator of last resort.[17] [18] [19] This was the first time that a franchise has been removed from a train operating company due to poor performance since Connex South Eastern in 2003. On 1 March 2020, the franchise became directly operated by DfT OLR Holdings with the stated objective to "stabilise performance and restore reliability for passengers".[20] [21]

Changes and events

By mid-2020, Northern had considerably curtailed its services in response to the significant decline of passenger travel amid the COVID-19 pandemic.[22] [23] From 15 June 2020, both passengers and staff on public transport in England, including Northern services, were required to wear face coverings while travelling, and that anyone failing to do so would be liable to be refused travel or fined.[24] [25]

In 2021 Northern was given a contract by the Department for Transport to run services for three years, with an optional extension of a further two years.[26] The contract was updated in 2022, to run until 1 March 2025.[27]

Northern is one of several train operators affected by the 2022–2024 United Kingdom railway strikes, which are the first national rail strikes in the UK for three decades.[28] Its workers are amongst those who voted to take industrial action due a dispute over pay and working conditions.[29] Northern urged the travelling public to avoid travelling on its services on any of the planned dates for the strikes, being only capable of operating a minimal timetable due to the number of staff involved.[30] [31]

Services

Northern took over all the services operated by Arriva Rail North on 1 March 2020.

Table of off-peak services

Below is a simplified list of frequent Monday to Saturday off-peak services, as of December 2023 timetables.[32] Due to the extensive nature of the network, it has been split by region, then majority rail line. One of the changes to the December timetable is the four trains per day service between Huddersfield and Castleford (which was frequently run as a bus rail replacement service), has been moved to TransPennine Express, and extended to start at, and run to via .[33]

North East

Tyne Valley, Durham Coast, Esk Valley Lines and East Coast Main Line
Route Calling at
to 1
Carlisle to 1
  • Trains either serve, or
  • 2 trains per day continue to, calling at,, and
Hexham to 1
Middlesbrough to
to Newcastle 1
Tees Valley Line
Route Calling at
to 1
Saltburn to 1

North West

Furness, Windermere and Cumbrian Coast lines
Route Calling at
to 1
  • 4 trains per day each run as Manchester Airport to Windermere, and Lancaster to Carlisle, services instead.
Barrow-in-Furness to 1
  • 4 trains per day run as Lancaster to Carlisle services
to 1
  • 4 trains per day run as Manchester Airport to Windermere services
Morecambe branch line
Route Calling at
to 1
  • Hourly service supplemented/modified by additional trains from .
  • 1 train per day extends to .
Liverpool–Wigan and Blackpool branch lines
Route Calling at
to 2
to 1
to Blackpool North 2
Preston to 1
East Lancashire and Ormskirk branch lines
Route Calling at
to 1
to Preston 1
Liverpool–Manchester lines
Route Calling at
to 1
  • Most trains either call at Glazebrook and Chassen Road or Humphrey Park and Trafford Park.
Liverpool Lime Street to Warrington Central 1
to 1
to Liverpool Lime Street 1
  • westbound only
to 2tpd
  • 1 train per day continues to, calling at and .
Crewe-Manchester, Mid-Cheshire, Stafford–Manchester, and Buxton lines
Route Calling at
to 1
1
Manchester Piccadilly to Alderley Edge 1
Manchester Piccadilly to 1
to 1
to 1
  • Services either call at Middlewood or Dove Holes.
to Hazel Grove 1
Glossop and Hope Valley lines
Route Calling at
to 2
Manchester Piccadilly to
Manchester Piccadilly to 1
Manchester Piccadilly to 1
Manchester–Southport and Kirkby branch lines
Route Calling at
to 1
to 1
to 1
Ribble Valley line
Route Calling at
to 1
to Rochdale 1

Yorkshire and the Humber

Huddersfield Line
Route Calling at
to Huddersfield 1
Wharfedale and Airedale lines
Route Calling at
to 2
Leeds to 2
Bradford Forster Square to Ilkley 2
Leeds to 2
Bradford Forster Square to Skipton 2
Harrogate Line
Route Calling at
to via 2
Pontefract Line
Route Calling at
to via 1
  • 2 trains per day extend to, calling at,, and .
Leeds to Knottingley via 1
Wakefield Line
Route Calling at
to 1
Leeds to via Wakefield Westgate 1
Penistone Line
Route Calling at
to 1
Hallam Line
Route Calling at
to via 1
Leeds to 1
Sheffield–Lincoln line
Route Calling at
to 1
Sheffield to 1 .
See
  1. Parliamentary services
below for more.
York and Selby Lines
Route Calling at
to via 1
to 1
South Humberside Main Line, Dearne Valley Line and Yorkshire Coast line
Route Calling at
to
to 1
Sheffield to 3
Doncaster to Hull Paragon 1
  • Most services call at either or .
Sheffield to 1
Bridlington to 1
Settle to Carlisle and Leeds to Morecambe
Route Calling at
to
Leeds to
Calder Valley line
Route Calling at
to 1
Leeds to 1
Leeds to 1
Leeds to 1

Parliamentary services

See main article: Parliamentary train. Twice weekly on Saturday mornings, once in each direction, Northern operates a parliamentary train on the Stockport–Stalybridge line between and calling at,, and .[34] [35] From 1992 until 2018, this service ran once weekly.[36]

Multiple campaigns were conducted to request increase in services to the line,[37] but in 2022, Transport for Greater Manchester published two surveys in relation to the line.[38]

As of May 2023, there is one train per day between and, via and . This service runs on weekdays only.[39] The service was suspended between January and October 2022 due to concerns related to the COVID-19 pandemic.[40] Between October 1993 and May 2023, this service ran on Saturdays only, but had three trains each way and on weekdays, a few peak services terminated at .

Rolling stock

Northern took over all of the rolling stock operated by its predecessor, namely Class 142, 144, 150, 153, 155, 156, 158, 170 and 195 diesel multiple units and Class 319, 321, 322, 323, 331 and 333 electric multiple units. All Class 321 and 322 units were withdrawn in mid-2020 and moved to Greater Anglia.[41] All Class 153s were sent to storage by December 2021.[42] 23 Class 156 units were transferred from East Midlands Railway, which includes eight of the nine Class 156/9 units formerly used by Greater Anglia,[43] although they were renumbered back to 156/4s before the transfer.[44] For the December timetable change in 2022, five more Class 156 units were transferred.[45] The final Class 156 units were delivered in May 2023.[46] The Class 319s were withdrawn on 2 January 2024.[47]

Current fleet

FamilyClassImageTypeTop speedNumberCarriagesRoutesBuilt
mphkm/h
Diesel multiple units
Sprinter150DMU7512163Lancashire, Greater Manchester, Liverpool, West Yorkshire, North Lincolnshire, South Yorkshire and Derbyshire[48] 19841987
69219851987
155 Super Sprinter72York, Leeds, Hull Paragon and Scarborough19871988
156 Super Sprinter66[49] 2North East, Cumbrian Coast, Lancashire and Cumbria, Merseyside and Cheshire19871989
158 Express Sprinter90145452South Yorkshire, West Yorkshire, Lancashire, Fylde Coast, North Yorkshire and the North East19901992
83
Bombardier Turbostar170100161163Scarborough - Sheffield, Leeds - York via Harrogate20032005
CAF Civity195252Manchester - Derbyshire, Sheffield, Liverpool, Leeds and Barrow in Furness, York - Blackpool, Windermere and Chester - Leeds20172020
333
Electric multiple units
Hunslet Transportation Projects/Holec[50] 323EMU90 14521[51] 3Manchester-Hadfield, Manchester-Stoke-on-Trent, Manchester-Crewe, and Liverpool-Manchester Airport19921995
CAF Civity331100161313Blackpool North - Manchester Airport, Liverpool, Leeds - Skipton, Bradford Forster Square, Doncaster, Ilkley, Bradford Forster Square - Skipton, Ilkley20172020
124Electric services in the North West.[52]
CAF/Siemens Transportation Systems333164Leeds - Bradford Forster Square, Skipton, Ilkley,
Bradford Forster Square - Skipton, Ilkley
20002003
Bi-mode multiple units
BR Second Generation (Mark 3)769 FlexBMU1001618[53] 4 - and 20172020 (19871988 as Class 319)

Future fleet

In August 2023, Northern issued a tender to acquire a contract for up to 450 new trains to replace the older rolling stock in their fleet.[54]

In 2024 Northern issued a tender for up to 329 new trains.[55]

17 Class 323s are to be transferred from West Midlands Trains.[56] [57]

Past fleet

Former train types operated by Northern include:

ClassImageTypeTop speedNumberCarriagesRoutesNotesBuiltLeft fleet
mphkm/h
142 PacerDMU75121792Local and commuter services across the NorthReplaced by Class 150, Class 156, Class 158, Class 170, and Class 195 units. 2020
144 Pacer2319861987
153 Super Sprinter171Replaced by units, later sent to storage19871988
Class 319/3EMU100161194Electrified commuter services in the North WestReplaced by Class 331 units.19902024
3213Electrified commuter services in West YorkshireReplaced by Class 331 units19912020
32251990

Depots

Northern currently has depots for its train crew at (conductors),[60],[61],[61],,, [61] (drivers),,,,,,,[61],,[62] (conductors),,[61], Skipton,, [61] and .[61]

Northern's fleet is maintained at depots listed in the table below:

DepotAllocationServicingNearest station
Allerton TMD08, 323,[63] 331, 769150, 156, 195
Blackburn King Street TMDNone150, 156, 195
Botanic Gardens TMD170155, 158
Heaton TMD156, 158
Holbeck TMDNone150, 158, 195
Newton Heath TMD150, 156, 195158, 769
Neville Hill TMD08, 150, 155, 158, 170, 331, 333[64] 195
Wigan Springs Branch TMDNone158, 195, 331, 769

Notes and References

  1. Web site: National Rail Enquiries - Northern . 22 July 2021 . www.nationalrail.co.uk.
  2. Web site: About Northern . 22 July 2021 . www.northernrailway.co.uk.
  3. Clifton . Paul . What customers want has changed. Rail Magazine. 981 . 19 April 2023 . 24–27.
  4. Web site: Northern Trains Limited . Companies House . 4 October 2020 . 24 December 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201224224012/https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/03076444 . live.
  5. Web site: Northern and TransPennine Express franchises awarded . . 9 December 2015 . 29 January 2020 . 29 January 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200129071829/https://www.railwaygazette.com/news/passenger/single-view/view/northern-and-transpennine-express-franchises-awarded.html . dead .
  6. Arriva and First win franchises with 500 new carriages promise . . 1378 . January 2016 . 6.
  7. News: Calder . Simon . Passenger fury at Northern Rail as train chaos hits Blackpool, Bolton and Manchester Airport on first day of new timetable . The Independent . 21 May 2018 . 21 May 2018.
  8. Web site: 'Unacceptable #NorthernFail' – the travel chaos passengers faced on first working day of new Northern timetable . Manchester Evening News . 21 May 2018 . 21 May 2018.
  9. Web site: Northern is a disaster. Why have commuters been left to face it alone? . The Guardian . 21 September 2018.
  10. Web site: Rail network 'crippling the North': Leeds commuter's angry open letter about life as a Northern passenger . Yorkshire Post . 14 October 2018.
  11. Web site: Paton . Graeme . Manchester Oxford Road station is worst for delays . The Times . 16 October 2018.
  12. Web site: UK's railway stations with most train delays revealed . BBC News . 16 October 2018.
  13. Web site: Gill . Oliver . German rail giant seeks help to prop up UK arm that owns Northern franchise . The Telegraph . 4 November 2018 . 6 November 2018.
  14. News: Northern rail operator faces end of the line . The Times . 2 June 2019 . 4 August 2019.
  15. Northern franchise to end within months . . 857 . February 2020 . 8.
  16. News: Northern rail to be stripped of franchise, says Grant Shapps . Syal . Rajeev . 2 January 2020 . The Guardian . 2 January 2020 . Topham . Gwyn . en-GB . 0261-3077.
  17. Web site: Northern rail to be stripped of franchise, says Grant Shapps . . 2 January 2020.
  18. Web site: Northern rail to be renationalised – and some Beeching closures could reopen . The Guardian . 27 January 2020.
  19. Web site: Ministers set to renationalise failed Northern rail franchise . . 28 January 2020.
  20. News: Rail firm Northern to be put into public ownership . 29 January 2020 . BBC News . 29 January 2020 . en-GB.
  21. Web site: 30 January 2020 . Customer Information . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20200229184137/https://www.northern.olrholdings.co.uk/faqs/customers . 29 February 2020 . 30 January 2020 . Northern OLR Holdings . Q: What are Northern Trains Limited’s plans for the franchise? Our initial priority is to continue to stabilise performance across the region and restore reliability for customers. We will then explore opportunities to improve the experience for customers..
  22. News: Coronavirus: Rail franchise agreements suspended to avoid company collapses . 23 March 2020 . 23 March 2020 . Sky News . 27 May 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200527060301/https://news.sky.com/story/coronavirus-rail-franchise-agreements-suspended-to-avoid-company-collapses-11962186 . live .
  23. Web site: COVID-19: Christmas travel disruption as Omicron hits rail and airline staffing . news.sky.com . Samuel . Osborne . 27 December 2021.
  24. Web site: Transport Secretary's statement on coronavirus (COVID-19): 4 June 2020 . GOV.UK . 4 June 2020 . 21 June 2020 . 23 June 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200623085630/https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/transport-secretarys-statement-on-coronavirus-covid-19-4-june-2020 . live.
  25. News: Coronavirus: facemask plans mired in confusion . Graeme . Paton . The Times . subscription . 21 June 2020 . 21 June 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200621001614/https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/coronavirus-facemask-plans-mired-in-confusion-wlsq7qf82 . live.
  26. Northern's commitment to transformation . Modern Railways . Key Publishing . Stamford . 893 . February 2023 . 62–67 .
  27. Web site: DfT OLR Holdings Limited and Northern Trains Limited 2022: services contract . 24 February 2022 . Department for Transport . 2 February 2023.
  28. News: Rail strike: RMT union votes for national action . . 24 May 2022 . 24 May 2022.
  29. News: The dates of the train, Tube and bus strikes this week, and how services will be affected . 20 June 2022 . Finnis. Alex. i. Daily Mail & General Trust. London. 24 June 2022.
  30. News: When are the rail strikes? Dates and lines affected in the Black Country and Staffordshire . David . Stubbings . . MNA Media. Wolverhampton. 24 June 2022.
  31. News: RAIL STRIKE: Northern Rail urges customers NOT to travel during week of RMT action . Sunderland Echo. Sunderland. . Kevin . Clark . 13 June 2022.
  32. Web site: Timetables Change . Northern Trains. northernrailway.co.uk. 21 December 2023.
  33. Stone . Mike . The new December timetable . Today's Railways . January 2024 . 263 . 35 . Platform 5 . Sheffield . 1475-9713.
  34. Web site: Halle-Richards . Sophie . 16 July 2022 . Greater Manchester town with gridlocked traffic and trains only twice a week . 12 December 2022 . Manchester Evening News . en.
  35. Web site: Wilkinson . Damon . 3 December 2022 . Greater Manchester 'ghost station' has only ONE passenger a week . 12 December 2022 . Manchester Evening News . en.
  36. News: Manchester Evening News . 15 February 2007 . Ghost train in reverse gear . 12 December 2022.
  37. Web site: Kirby . Dean . 30 April 2013 . 'We won't give up the ghost' on Denton station with 30 passengers a year . 12 December 2022 . Manchester Evening News . en.
  38. Web site: New surveys launched in bid to help improve local rail connections . 12 December 2022 . Quest Media Network . en.
  39. Web site: Timetable change May 2023 . 5 May 2023 . Northern Trains.
  40. Web site: 24 October 2022 . Brigg rail service from Sheffield to Cleethorpes makes comeback after outcry . 17 December 2022 . GrimsbyLive . en-GB.
  41. Northern finishes with Dusty Bins . . July 2020 . 16.
  42. Northern and East Midlands Railway Class 153 fleets stood down . . February 2022 . 26.
  43. March 2021 . More 156s for Northern . . 870 . 87.
  44. April 2022 . Fleet Analysis (Northern) . . 230 . 50.
  45. Class 156 'Super Sprinter'. Units. . 319 . December 2022. 27.
  46. EMR stands down '180s' and '156s . . 984 . 31 May 2023. 23.
  47. Miles. Tony. '319s' finish with Northern. Moving Wheels . . 905. February 2024. 87.
  48. Web site: Train Types . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20210419164050/https://www.northernrailway.co.uk/traintypes . 19 April 2021 . 3 January 2020 . www.northernrailway.co.uk.
  49. Ford. Rodger. Northern train requirements short on detail. Informed Sources. Modern Railways. 902. November 2023. 30–31.
  50. News: 23 March 1994 . Hunslet has had enough of 'misery line' battles . 3 . . 23 September 2022.
  51. Ford. Roger . New train procurements generates cost challenges . Informed sources. . 910. 81. July 2024. 36-42.
  52. Russell. David. Class 331. Units. . 332. January 2024. 23.
  53. Class 769 fleets . . 242 . April 2022 . 35.
  54. Web site: SUPPLY OF NEW ROLLING STOCK AND MAINTENANCE SUPPORT SERVICES - Find a Tender . 12 August 2023 . www.find-tender.service.gov.uk.
  55. Dunn. Pip. Northern invites tenders for up to 329 new trains. Network News. . 1010. 29 May 2024. 20–21.
  56. Class 323 EMUs to remain in traffic with Northern . . 886 . 28 August 2019 . 30.
  57. First refurbished Class 323 for Northern . . January 2020 . 9.
  58. Web site: Northern to retain 323s . Modern Railways . 15 August 2019 . 15 August 2019.
  59. West Midlands Trains turns back the clock with retro repaint for Class 323. Today's Railways Uk . 252 . February 2023 . 55.
  60. In Brief . News. . 258. August 2024. 13.
  61. Northern announces significant driver and conductor recruitment plans . News. . 256. 1 June 2024. 11.
  62. Sherrat. Philip. Northern builds for the future. . 907. 81. April 2024. 66–70.
  63. Class 323 EMUs to remain in traffic with Northern . Rail . 886 . August 2019 . 30.
  64. Pickering. Graeme. Neville Hill
    125 years old and still evolving. . 1478. 170. May 2024. 47–51.