Merseyside is a ceremonial and metropolitan county in North West England. It borders Lancashire to the north, Greater Manchester to the east, Cheshire to the south, the Welsh county of Flintshire across the Dee Estuary to the southwest, and the Irish Sea to the west. All boroughs of the Merseyside area are also part of the Liverpool City Region. The largest settlement is the City of Liverpool.
Arriva Trains Merseyside was a train operating company in England owned by Arriva that operated the Merseyrail Electrics franchise from January 1997 until July 2003, when the Merseyrail railway franchise was transformed into the local Merseyrail concession, owned by the Merseyrail Passenger Transport Executive (Merseytravel).
Merseyrail is a commuter rail network which serves Merseyside and adjacent areas of Cheshire and Lancashire in the North West of England. Merseyrail serves 69 stations, 67 of which it manages, across two lines – the Northern line and the Wirral line. The network uses 750 V DC third rail electrified lines having 75.0 miles (120.7 km) of routes, of which 6.5 miles (10.5 km) are underground. Since January 2023, Merseyrail commenced replacing its train fleet, withdrawing the Class 507 and 508 trains and introducing 53 new Class 777 trains. The network carried 28.3 million passengers in the 2023/2024 statistical period.
In the United Kingdom, passenger transport executives (PTEs) are local government bodies which are responsible for public transport within large urban areas. They are accountable to combined authorities, which were created between 2011 and 2016 and took the role of integrated transport authorities (ITAs). The PTEs have joined together to form the Urban Transport Group, in which Transport for London and Strathclyde Partnership for Transport also participate.
Merseytram was a proposed light rail system for Merseyside, England. Originally proposed in 2001, forming part of the Merseyside Local Transport Plan, it was to consist of three lines, connecting the Metropolitan Borough of Knowsley with central Liverpool. The project was postponed due to funding problems before eventually being formally closed down by Merseytravel in October 2013.
The Liverpool City Region is a combined authority area in North West England. It has six council areas: the five metropolitan boroughs of Merseyside and the unitary authority of Halton in Cheshire. The city region had a population of 1,571,045 in 2022. Its largest settlement and administrative HQ is Liverpool.
The Northern line is one of two commuter rail routes operated by Merseyrail and centred on Merseyside, England, the other being the Wirral line. The cross-city route runs from Hunts Cross in south Liverpool then branches in the north to terminate at Southport, Headbolt Lane and Ormskirk (Lancashire).
The Wirral line is one of two commuter rail routes operated by Merseyrail and centred on Merseyside, England, the other being the Northern line.
MTL Trust Holdings was an English bus, coach and train operator based in Liverpool, Merseyside. MTL was originally part of the MPTE. To comply with the Transport Act 1985, the bus operations were divested into a new independent company, Merseyside Transport Limited (MTL). Merseyside PTA retained shareholding, but the company was purchased by its management and staff in a £5.9 million Employee Share Ownership Plan in 1993. On 17 February 2000, MTL was purchased by Arriva for £85 million, with MTL's shareholding workers each receiving £13,500 in windfall gains from the sale.
Arriva North West and Wales was a division of Arriva that operated bus services around North West England and Wales. It was made up from several previous bus operators, including North Western, most of MTL North, the Bee Line Buzz Company, and most of what was once Crosville Motor Services.
The City Line is the brand name used by Merseytravel on suburban rail services in the Liverpool City Region starting eastwards from the mainline platforms of Liverpool Lime Street railway station.
The Passenger Transport Executive (PTE) bus operations were the bus operating divisions of the passenger transport executives in the United Kingdom. In 1986 they underwent a process of deregulation and privatisation, forming some of the largest private bus companies in the UK outside London, with all being sold to their employees or management. Despite their relative size and lucrative operating areas, none of the companies survived beyond the late 1990s, with all falling into the hands of the major bus groups, who had their origins in privatised regional subsidiaries of the former National Bus Company and the Scottish Bus Group.
North Western Road Car Company was a bus operator based in Liverpool, England. The company operated between 1986 and 1998.
Glenvale Transport (GTL) was a bus company that operated services in Liverpool between July 2001 and July 2005.
Liverpool in North West England, is a major British city with significant road, rail, and ferry networks, in addition to an international airport and a well-known dock system. As with most other major UK cities, Liverpool's transport infrastructure is centred on its road and rail networks. Public transport services within the city are controlled and run by Merseytravel.
Stagecoach Merseyside and South Lancashire is a major operator of bus services in North West England. It is a subsidiary of the Stagecoach Group and is headquartered in Liverpool.
The history of Merseyrail dates back to the 19th century, with the original formation of the Mersey Railway, however, Merseyrail dates back to the 20th century, namely being set up by British Rail in 1969, it did not become a single network until 1977.
Merseybus was a bus operator running bus and coach services predominantly in and around Merseyside, England. Based at Edge Lane, Liverpool, Merseybus was formed as an "arm's length" operation of the Merseyside Passenger Transport Executive out of its bus operations following bus deregulation in Great Britain and was later sold to Merseybus management and staff in a £5.9 million Employee Share Ownership Plan in 1993, forming the core of MTL's bus operations. Merseybus was subsequently sold alongside all MTL operations to Arriva on 17 February 2000, and operations today trade under Arriva North West.
Metro is a planned network of franchised bus services within the boundaries of the Liverpool City Region combined authority area, created under the bus franchising provisions of the Bus Services Act 2017. First announced in October 2023 by Liverpool City Region Combined Authority (LRCRA) Metro Mayor Steve Rotheram, the network is set to commence operations in 2026, starting in St Helens.
