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Calder Valley Line: Safety

Asked by Josh Fenton-GlynnLabourDepartment for TransportTabled Answered 2 March 2026UIN 115716

The question

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment she has made of the adequacy of levels of capacity and reliability on the Calder Valley line; and what plans she has to address performance issues.

Answered by Keir Mather

Government is part way through a long term investment plan for the Calder Valley line that provides more capacity, improved reliability and better connections to opportunities in Manchester, Bradford and Leeds. From May 27, the government expect to see longer trains and performance improvements resulting from the simplification of operations around Manchester Victoria. Northern will start to introduce new trains from the early 2030s.

As announced in January phase three of the Northern Powerhouse Rail programme will deliver improved connections between Manchester and Bradford. To support upcoming decisions on a new Bradford station, we will assess initial options for Bradford–Manchester connectivity as part of the station business case. This assessment will include consideration of the Calder Valley line.

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