Piccadilly corridor renewal: No trains between Manchester Piccadilly and Stockport from Saturday 14 to Sunday 22 February 

Route(s) affected

Avanti West Coast between Manchester Piccadilly and London Euston

CrossCountry between Manchester Piccadilly and Birmingham New Street / Bristol Temple Meads / Bournemouth

East Midlands Railway between Liverpool Lime Street and Nottingham / Norwich

Northern between Manchester Piccadilly and Hadfield / Glossop / Hazel Grove / Romiley / Rose Hill Marple / Sheffield / Manchester Airport / Alderley Edge / Buxton / Chester / Crewe / Stoke-on-Trent, and also between Liverpool Lime Street / Blackpool North / Barrow-in-Furness / Windermere

TransPennine Express between Liverpool Lime Street and Cleethorpes

Transport for Wales between Manchester Piccadilly and Cardiff Central / Swansea / Carmarthen / Pembroke Dock / Milford Haven / Fishguard Harbour, and between Manchester Airport and Chester / North Wales

Description

Engineering work is taking place between Manchester Piccadilly and Stockport, closing all lines for nine days. Background information on the work taking place can be found below.

Journeys to / from the South and East of England via Stockport

(Avanti West Coast, CrossCountry, East Midlands Railway, TransPennine Express, Transport for Wales)

Long-distance services will mostly start / terminate at Stockport, with replacement buses connecting Stockport and Manchester Piccadilly. The following services will start / terminate at Stockport:

• Avanti West Coast: Two trains per hour to / from London Euston (one via Wilmslow and Crewe, one via Macclesfield and Stoke-on-Trent)

• CrossCountry: Two trains per hour to / from Birmingham New Street (with services continuing to / from Bournemouth, Bristol and elsewhere as usual)

• TransPennine Express: One train per hour to / from Cleethorpes via Sheffield

East Midlands Railway services to / from Nottingham / Norwich will start / terminate at Sheffield. A replacement bus will run between Chesterfield and Manchester Piccadilly to connect with this service. Alternative rail services are available between Manchester Piccadilly and Liverpool Lime Street (see below).

Transport for Wales services to / from South Wales will start / terminate at Crewe. Please use other train services between Crewe and Stockport, and replacement buses between Stockport and Manchester Piccadilly.

Local services to / from South and East Manchester

(Northern, TransPennine Express)

There will be no rail services between Manchester Piccadilly and Manchester Airport, Stockport, Rose Hill Marple (via Bredbury), or Guide Bridge.

Northern will run the following services in South and East Manchester:

• One train per hour from Guide Bridge to Hadfield (Monday - Saturday only). Rail replacement buses will operate on this route on Sundays

• One train per hour from Guide Bridge to Sheffield via Hyde Central

• One train per hour from Stockport to Buxton

• One train per hour from Stockport to Stoke-on-Trent (Monday - Saturday only). Rail replacement buses will operate on this route on Sundays

• One train per hour from Stockport to Crewe

• One train per hour from Manchester Airport to Crewe

• One train per hour between Altrincham and Chester (Monday - Saturday only). Please use Metrolink to complete your journey between Manchester City Centre and Altrincham. The 370 / 371 bus is also available between Altrincham and Stockport. Rail tickets will be accepted on trams and buses at no extra cost. Rail replacement buses will operate on this route on Sundays

Rail replacement buses will be available between Manchester Piccadilly and Stockport (non-stop). If you are travelling to / from Levenshulme and Heaton Chapel, please use the 192 bus service between Manchester City Centre and Stockport (rail tickets will be accepted at no extra cost).

Northern will also run the following replacement bus services:

• Two buses per hour from Manchester Victoria to Guide Bridge

• One bus per hour from Manchester Victoria to Rose Hill Marple via Bredbury

• One bus per hour (all stations) from Manchester Piccadilly to Manchester Airport. This will increase to two buses per hour at peak times. There will also be two non-stop buses per hour between Manchester Piccadilly and Manchester Airport operated by TransPennine Express

• On Sundays only, one bus per hour between Manchester Victoria and Hadfield. Rail replacement buses will not call directly at Hattersley and Broadbottom. An additional minibus shuttle will be provided between Godley and Hadfield, calling at Hattersley and Broadbottom

• On Sundays only, one bus per hour between Manchester Piccadilly and Stoke-on-Trent

• On Sundays only, one bus per hour between Stockport and Chester via Altrincham

TransPennine Express services to / from York via Castleford (serving local stations between Manchester and Huddersfield) will start / terminate at Manchester Victoria instead of Manchester Piccadilly.

Services to / from the North and West

(East Midlands Railway, Northern, TransPennine Express, Transport for Wales)

Services from the North and West that would normally run through Manchester Piccadilly to Manchester Airport will mostly start / terminate at Manchester Oxford Road or Manchester Piccadilly platforms 13 / 14.

The following services will run:

• Northern: Two trains per hour from Manchester Piccadilly to Blackpool North

• Northern: One train per hour from Manchester Piccadilly to Liverpool Lime Street (calling at all stations via Earlestown)

• TransPennine Express: One train per hour from Manchester Oxford Road to Liverpool Lime Street (express via Warrington Central)

• Transport for Wales: One train per hour from Manchester Oxford Road to Chester / North Wales

Northern services to / from Cumbria and TransPennine Express services to / from Scotland will start / terminate at Preston. Please use alternative rail services between Preston and Manchester City Centre.
TransPennine Express services to / from Redcar will start / terminate at Manchester Victoria (please note these services will also be affected by other engineering work on Saturday 14 and Sunday 15 February).

Services to / from Manchester Airport

(Northern, TransPennine Express, Transport for Wales)

There will be no rail services running between Manchester Piccadilly and Manchester Airport. An hourly rail service will operate between Manchester Airport and Crewe via Wilmslow.

Train operators are running a number of direct buses to / from the airport to provide faster and smoother journeys, avoiding the need to change in Manchester City Centre.

The following replacement buses will run:

• One bus per hour from Manchester Airport to Manchester Piccadilly (all stations). Increases to two buses per hour at peak times

• Two express buses per hour from Manchester Airport to Manchester Piccadilly (non-stop)

• One bus per hour from Manchester Airport to Huddersfield (via Stockport). For Trans-Pennine journeys between Manchester Airport and Leeds / York / Hull / Newcastle / Sheffield

• One bus per hour from Manchester Airport to Bolton. For connections to the North-West

• One bus per hour from Manchester Airport to Preston. For connections to the North-West and Scotland

• One bus per hour from Manchester Airport to Warrington Bank Quay (via Warrington Central). For connections to Liverpool, Chester and North Wales

Background information:

Network Rail are investing £7.9m to improve tracks, points and signalling systems on the southern approach to Manchester Piccadilly station – known as the Piccadilly corridor - delivering better, more reliable journeys for passengers.

Investment in this critical stretch of track has been long awaited, as any issues with the ageing 1980s infrastructure can disrupt all trains running in and out of Manchester, causing delays for passengers. In 2024, there were 35 faults on this stretch of track. Therefore, this much needed critical life-expired track infrastructure renewal is designed to improve train performance in Greater Manchester and on the West Coast Main Line.

Teams will replace 11 sets of points, renew timber sleepers with modern, concrete equivalents and bring lineside equipment bang up to date across six lines to improve future journeys for passengers and freight. While the train shed (platforms 1 - 12) will close during the work, Manchester Piccadilly station’s concourse will remain open to the public. There will be a limited service westbound from platforms 13 and 14.

More details on the work taking place are available on the Network Rail website.

Check before you travel:

You can plan your journey using the National Rail Enquiries Journey Planner

You can plan your journey on public buses / trams by using use the Transport for Greater Manchester website

Replacement bus travel advice:

For helpful advice if you need to travel on a rail replacement service, including accessibility and bicycle information, please use our Rail Replacement Services page.

You can find the pick-up and set-down location of rail replacement services by checking station signage or by searching for your station on our Find a Station page.

Please be advised that replacement vehicles may be busier than usual, and you should allow extra time for your journey.