Merseyrail — BrandWiki

Merseyrail

Overview

Merseyrail

alt	Merseyrail logo, a yellow letter M on a grey circle.
image2	777010 at Hooton Station 20210728-1.jpg
caption2	A Class 777 in service on the Wirral line at Hooton
owner	Merseytravel, Network Rail
area served	Liverpool City Region and surrounding areas
locale	Liverpool City Region (Merseyside and Halton) Cheshire Lancashire
transit type	Commuter rail
stations	69 (67 managed)
annual ridership	29.9 million (2024/2025)
system length	122 km
chief executive	Neil Grabham‡R3R‡
began operation	1886 as the Mersey Railway, 1977 as expanded Merseyrail
operator	Merseyrail Electrics 2002 (Serco and Transport UK Group)
host	Network Rail
character	Commuter rail, Concession
vehicles	53
map	Merseyrail Map - 2024.svg
map state	show
lines	2 (plus main line commuter services)
headway	15 minutes (general), 5 minutes (central sections), 30 minutes (Ellesmere Port branch, general in evenings and on Sundays)
train length	4 cars, 8 cars during peak times
headquarters	Rail House, Liverpool

Merseyrail is a commuter rail network which serves Merseyside and adjacent areas of Lancashire and Cheshire in North West England. The network consists of two lines, the Northern Line and Wirral Line, which together serve 69 stations along 122 km of routes, of which 6.5 mi are underground. It uses Class 777 trains based on the Stadler METRO platform, which primarily operate on electrified track. The network carried 29.9 million passengers in 2024/2025. Since 2003 the network has been run as a concession, held by Serco and Transport UK Group.

Merseyrail was established in 1977, when existing railway lines were connected by constructing new tunnels under Liverpool city centre and Birkenhead. The network has since been expanded through the creation of new stations, the electrification of existing lines, and the use of trains capable of running on battery power; the last allow trains to reach Headbolt Lane despite the line leading to the station not being electrified.

Network

The Merseyrail Network is a, primarily, self-contained network, and is operated by Merseyrail Electrics 2002, a Merseytravel concession, currently held as a 50:50 joint venture between Serco

Northern line

The Northern line is shown in blue on the Merseyrail and Merseytravel[12] maps and denoted by the above wordmark on underground stations. Services operate on three main routes: from Hunts Cross in the south of Liverpool to via the Link tunnel from Brunswick station through central Liverpool, from Liverpool Central to Southport, and from Liverpool Central to Headbolt lane via Kirkby. Each route operates a train every 15minutes from Monday to Saturday, giving a frequent interval between trains on the central section. Some additional trains run at peak hours on the Southport line.

On matchdays at Liverpool F.C.'s Anfield, Northern line services connect with the SoccerBus service at Sandhills station to transport fans to the stadia. Bus departures are at frequent intervals from Sandhills station with ticketing to combine both modes of travel. Sandhills station is within walking distance of Everton FC's Hill Dickinson Stadium.

Connections to non-Merseyrail services are available at:

Southport to Wigan Wallgate and ;
Liverpool South Parkway for services operated by London Northwestern Railway, East Midlands Railway, TransPennine Express and Northern serving, , and various destinations within Yorkshire and the West Midlands;
Hunts Cross to Warrington Central and Manchester Oxford Road;
Ormskirk to Preston;
Headbolt Lane to Blackburn via Wigan Wallgate and Manchester Victoria.[13]

Wirral line

The Wirral line is shown in green on the Merseyrail and Merseytravel[12] maps and denoted by the above wordmark on underground stations. Services operate from the four terminus stations of: Chester, Ellesmere Port, New Brighton and West Kirby. Each service from one of these the terminus stations runs through Birkenhead Hamilton Square underground station in Birkenhead, then through the Mersey Railway Tunnel, continuing around the single track underground loop tunnel under Liverpool's city centre. Trains head back into the Mersey Railway Tunnel to return to one of the four terminus stations.

Monday-Saturday services are every 15minutes to/from Liverpool to Chester, New Brighton and West Kirby, and every 30minutes to/from Ellesmere Port (Monday–Sunday). These combine to give a service at least every five minutes from Birkenhead Hamilton Square and around the loop under Liverpool's city centre.[13]

Connections to non-Merseyrail services are available at:

Bidston on the West Kirby branch for the Borderlands line to Wrexham, operated by Transport for Wales;

City Line

The City Line, or City Lines,[14] is the brand name used by Merseytravel on services out of the mainline platforms of Liverpool Lime Street railway station to 26 stations on its sponsored network, and cross-boundary destinations outside of the Liverpool City Region. Merseytravel has policies in place to improve the service frequency, new services and to invest in the City line. Despite the City Line being operated by other train operators than Merseyrail, as of 2000, it is marketed and branded as Merseytravel or Merseyrail to meet the passenger transport executive's aims to provide the network with a local identity and shared fare and ticketing structures.[15][16][17] The line is depicted on signage and maps using the colour red and the above word mark,[12]

City Line

The City Line, or City Lines,[14] is the brand name used by Merseytravel on services out of the mainline platforms of Liverpool Lime Street railway station to 26 stations on its sponsored network, and cross-boundary destinations outside of the Liverpool City Region. Merseytravel has policies in place to improve the service frequency, new services and to invest in the City line. Despite the City Line being operated by other train operators than Merseyrail, as of 2000, it is marketed and branded as Merseytravel or Merseyrail to meet the passenger transport executive's aims to provide the network with a local identity and shared fare and ticketing structures.[15][16][17] The line is depicted on signage and maps using the colour red and the above word mark,[12] but unlike the other two lines without the term "Merseyrail".[12]

Fleet

Merseyrail took over the fleet of Class 507 and 508 units from previous operator Arriva Trains Merseyside, all of which have since been withdrawn. In 2020, rolling-stock manufacturer Stadler Rail delivered the first of a new fleet of 53 trains, designated Class 777, based on their Stadler METRO platform. Merseytravel has an option to purchase up to 60 additional units could be exercised if services are extended to new destinations such as Helsby, Skelmersdale or Wrexham.[27]

The first Class 777 unit entered into service on the Northern line on 23 January 2023.[28][29] Initially they were being used on the Kirkby route, followed by the Ormskirk route.[30] The trains were introduced to the Wirral line, Ormskirk, Southport and Hunts Cross routes in late 2023.[30] A small portion of the fleet are BEMUs, with these operating the services to Headbolt Lane station in Kirkby.[31]

Merseyrail's fleet are maintained and stabled at Kirkdale TMD, which is Stadler's United Kingdom headquarters,[32] and additionally units are stabled at Birkenhead North TMD, and Southport Carriage Holding Sidings.

During Merseyrail's history, there were several other depots, such as Hall Road TMD and Birkenhead Central TMD.

Current fleet

Past fleet

The original service on the Merseyrail lines was provided by the Class 502 on the Northern line and Class 503 on the Wirral line. The former was withdrawn by 1980 and the latter by 1985.[37][38]

Introduced from 1978 and 1979 respectively were 33 Class 507 and 43 Class 508 units. Since the 1990s, 15 Class 508 units have been withdrawn as surplus and have later transferred to other operators with 12 units being transferred to Connex South Eastern and three units being transferred to Silverlink. Three additional Class 507 and 508 units, including unit 507006 after a crash at Kirkby in March 2021,[39] were written off following their accidents. In 2023, further withdrawals of the trains began, having been replaced by the new Class 777.

In February 2024, the last Class 508 units were withdrawn, followed by the last Class 507 units in November.[40]

Franchise and concession history

As a result of the privatisation of British Rail, the Northern and Wirral lines were brought together as the Mersey Rail Electrics passenger franchise, being sold on 19 January 1997. Although franchises are awarded and administered on a national level (initially through various independent bodies, and later the Department of Transport directly), under the original privatisation legislation of 1993, passenger transport executives (PTEs) were co-signatories of franchise agreements covering their areas – this role being later modified by the Railways Act 2005.

The first train operating company awarded the Mersey Rail Electrics franchise contract was MTL. MTL was originally the operating arm of Merseytravel but had been privatised in 1985. The brand name Merseyrail Electrics was adopted by MTL.

The Merseyrail name became the official brand for the network in the days of British Rail, surviving several franchise holders, although the name was not used by Arriva when holding the franchise. Despite this, Merseytravel continued the Merseyrail branding at stations, allowing the name to be adopted colloquially. With acquisition by Arriva, the train operating company was rebranded Arriva Trains Merseyside from 27 April 2001. Merseyrail is referred to as "Merseyrail Electrics" by National Rail Enquiries, and as "Serco/Abellio Merseyrail" by Merseytravel.

The City line was also privatised under the 1993 Act, but as part of a different, much larger North West Regional Railways (NWRR) franchise. Upon sale on 2 March 1997, the first train operating company awarded the NWRR franchise contract was North Western Trains (owned by Great Western Holdings). The train operating company was later bought by FirstGroup and rebranded First North Western.

The third-rail electric Northern and Wirral lines were largely isolated from the rest of the National Rail network with no through passenger services to or from outside the third-rail Merseyrail network. A decision was to transfer the network into exclusive Merseytravel control, being removed from the national franchising system. The Secretary of State exempted the two lines from being designated as a national railway franchise under the 1993 Act.[44]

When the Mersey Rail Electrics franchise was due for renewal, coming into force on 20 July 2003, Merseytravel contracted the operation of the two lines with a concession extending for up to 25years. The first successful bidder was Merseyrail Electrics (2002) Ltd, a joint venture between Serco and NedRailways (renamed Abellio in 2009).[45]

The City line, which was largely diesel-operated at the time, was not included in 2003 franchise, continuing as a part of the nationally administered rail franchise system. From 11 December 2004, the NWRR franchise was merged into a new Northern franchise. The first train operating company awarded this franchise contract was Northern Rail, also owned by a Serco-NedRail (Abellio) joint venture. This franchise passed to Arriva Rail North on 1 April 2016 and then to Northern Trains on 1 March 2020.

Due to the isolation of the Northern and Wirral lines, Merseyrail Electrics (2002) Ltd are keen to adopt vertical integration – taking responsibility for maintenance of the track from Network Rail.