Merseytravel

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Merseytravel
Company type Passenger Transport Executive
Industry Public transport
Founded Transport Act 1968
(1 December 1969)
Headquarters Mann Island Buildings, Liverpool, England
Area served
 Liverpool City Region
Key people
Frank Rogers (CEO)
Liam Robinson (Chairman)
Parent Liverpool City Region Combined Authority
Subsidiaries Merseyrail
Mersey Ferries
Mersey Tunnels
The Beatles Story
Website www.merseytravel.gov.uk OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg

Merseytravel is the passenger transport executive, responsible for the coordination of public transport in the Liverpool City Region in North West England. Merseytravel was established on 1 December 1969 as the Merseyside Passenger Transport Executive. From 1 April 2014, with the creation of the Liverpool City Region, Merseytravel expanded its area of operation from the metropolitan county of Merseyside to also include the Borough of Halton.

Contents

Governance

Merseytravel's Headquarters at No.1 Mann Island Mann Island 3 Close Up.jpg
Merseytravel's Headquarters at No.1 Mann Island

The Merseyside Passenger Transport Authority and Merseyside Passenger Transport Executive were established as a result of the Transport Act 1968. The authority, which was responsible for transport strategy and policy, included representatives from 18 different councils. [1] The executive was responsible for day-to-day operation of transport services. [1] In 1974, when the transport organisation's boundaries were made co-extensive with the new metropolitan county of Merseyside which was formally created by the Local Government Act 1972, the authority was composed of 23 councillors of the new Merseyside County Council. [1]

When the metropolitan county councils were abolished by the Local Government Act 1985, new structures had to be created. A new joint board - again called The Merseyside Passenger Transport Authority - was created. It was later renamed the Merseyside Integrated Transport Authority and composed 18 councillors assembled from Merseyside's five districts: Liverpool, Knowsley, St Helens, Sefton and Wirral. On 1 April 2014, the Merseyside Integrated Transport Authority was abolished and reformed as the Merseytravel Committee of Liverpool City Region Combined Authority. The transport authority area is extended to include the whole of the Liverpool City Region, which comprises Merseyside and the Borough of Halton. [2]

In May 2021, mayor Steve Rotherham set out a plan for all trains, buses and ferries to become an integrated transport system under Merseytravel, owned by the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority. [3]

Rail services

Merseyrail map 2010.svg
class=notpageimage|
Merseyrail lines shown in Merseyside
   Northern line
   Wirral line
   MT City Lines
  Primary route
  Secondary route
  Rural route
  Goods line
  Disused line
Merseyrail 508126 at Ellesmere Port station in June 2012 Ellesmere Port railway station (4).JPG
Merseyrail 508126 at Ellesmere Port station in June 2012

Merseyrail Northern and Wirral lines

As a result of the privatisation of British Rail, the Northern and Wirral lines of the local Merseyrail rail network were brought together as the Mersey Rail Electrics passenger franchise, that was privatised on 19 January 1997. Under the original privatisation legislation of 1993, PTEs were co-signatories of franchise agreements covering their areas. The first train operating company (TOC) awarded the franchise contract was MTL, originally the operating arm of the PTE, but privatised itself in 1985. It traded under the Merseyrail Electrics brand, but after MTL was sold to Arriva, the company was rebranded Arriva Trains Merseyside from 27 April 2001. [4] [5] [6]

When the franchise came up for renewal, reflecting the exclusive nature of the two lines - being largely isolated from the rest of the National Rail network and with no through passenger services to/from outside the Merseyrail network, the decision was taken to remove it from the national framework and bring it into local control. As a result, using the Merseyrail Electrics Network Order 2002 the Secretary of State for Transport exempted the system from being designated as a railway franchise under the privatisation legislation (the Railways Act 1993). This allowed the PTE to contract out the lines themselves, which it did with Merseyrail operated by Serco-Abellio commencing a 25-year contract on 20 July 2003. [7] [8]

Unlike most rolling stock that is owned by private sector rolling stock companies, Merseytravel will outright own the Class 777 fleet, operated by Merseyrail. [9] The current Class 507 and Class 508 fleets are owned by Angel Trains and leased to Merseyrail.

Merseytravel City line

A third line, the City line, also historically branded as Merseyrail under British Rail, was also privatised under the 1993 Act, but as part of the much larger North West Regional Railways (NWRR) franchise. On 2 March 1997, North Western Trains, later rebranded First North Western, commenced operating the franchise. Some Class 142 units were repainted in Merseytravel's yellow livery. This line was not included in the 2003 exemption given to the other two lines, and so it has continued as part of the government-administered rail franchise system, although the role of PTEs in the franchising process has altered due by the 2005 Railways Act. From 11 December 2004, the NWRR franchise was merged into a new Northern franchise and operated by Northern Rail. The Merseyrail Class 142 units were repainted into Northern Rail livery. On 1 April 2016, the franchise was taken over by Arriva Rail North. [7] [10]

Bus services

Merseytravel bus and rail sign on St James Street James Street, Liverpool - James Street Interchange (10480953765).jpg
Merseytravel bus and rail sign on St James Street

Prior to the Transport Act 1985, which nationally mandated the deregulation and privatisation of bus services in 1986 throughout England except Greater London, it operated a large proportion of the bus services on Merseyside, under the Merseyside Transport brand. It had taken over the municipally provided bus operations of Liverpool, Birkenhead and Wallasey county borough corporations in 1970, and expanded to cover the county borough municipal corporation areas and bus services of St Helens and Southport in 1974. The PTE also extensively co-ordinated and joint operated bus services on Merseyside with National Bus Company subsidiaries Crosville and Ribble. These were both longer distance services coming into Merseyside from Cheshire and Lancashire along with Crosville and Ribble services operated in Sefton, Liverpool and the Wirral only. The PTE also had significant involvement in the operation of Crosville and Ribble garages on Merseyside too. Similar arrangements also existed with Lancashire United Transport/Greater Manchester Transport and Warrington Borough Transport from services connecting Merseyside with Cheshire, Greater Manchester and Lancashire.

Merseybus Leyland Titan in Anfield in June 1996 Merseybus 2374.jpg
Merseybus Leyland Titan in Anfield in June 1996

After deregulation, the Merseyside Transport operations were branded as Merseybus , and were subsequently privatised as MTL. The previous co-ordination of Merseyside's bus network disappeared as Crosville, Ribble now known as North Western and Greater Manchester's GM Buses became competitors of Merseybus along with new entrants like CMT Buses, Fareway, Halton Transport, Liverbus, Liverlne, PMT's Red Rider, Village Group, and other smaller operators. Merseyside's popular bus corridors became a hot-bed of intense competition with less lucrative services ignored and in some cases disappearing. Ultimately things settled down in the mid-1990s with Merseybus parent company MTL took over a number of the new entrants, some disappearing and North Western now owned by Arriva the remainder. In 2000 MTL was bought by Arriva and is now part of an enlarged Arriva North West. However Arriva was required by the Monopolies & Mergers Commission to divest some of its Liverpool operations; which are now operated by Stagecoach Merseyside & South Lancashire. There are also smaller Merseyside operators like Cumfybus and HTL Buses.

Today, Merseytravel is also responsible for providing bus services which are considered socially necessary but are not profitable, these are operated by other operators, using a best value tendering system. Fares are presently subsidised at levels lower than local commercial services.

Ferries and tunnels

Royal Iris of the Mersey in November 2009 Royal iris mersey ferry.jpg
Royal Iris of the Mersey in November 2009

Merseytravel owns and operates the Mersey Ferry service between Liverpool Pier Head, Seacombe in Wallasey and Woodside in Birkenhead. The fleet consists of two vessels: Royal Iris of the Mersey and Snowdrop.

There are three transport tunnels under the River Mersey. The passenger transport executive is responsible for the two road vehicular tunnels under the River Mersey, one connecting Birkenhead to Liverpool city centre, the other, Wallasey, to the centre of Liverpool, and consequently it controls the Mersey Tunnels Police. The tunnel to, and from, Birkenhead is the Queensway Tunnel, and the Wallasey, the Kingsway Tunnel. Merseyrail also runs through a railway tunnel under the river connecting central Liverpool and Birkenhead, which was the first transport tunnel under the Mersey to be built, in the nineteenth century.

Non-transport ventures

Entrance to The Beatles Story on Royal Albert Dock Entrance to The Beatles Story - Liverpool.jpg
Entrance to The Beatles Story on Royal Albert Dock

Merseytravel, through Mersey Ferries, owns the Liverpool tourist attraction The Beatles Story, [11] a museum dedicated to The Beatles located on Royal Albert Dock.

Future projects

Neil Scales, the former chief executive and director general of Merseytravel, in his 2011 presentation "Growing the Railways on Merseyside", [12] outlined future projects that Merseytravel may be involved in:

Merseytravel have also stated their support to linking Liverpool to the High Speed 2 network with a directly connected, brand new, twin-track line. [13]

In September 2017, a report was compiled into the reopening of Liverpool St James railway station which concluded that the reopening of the station would be highly beneficial. [14]

Liverpool City Region Combined Authority announced in August 2019 that they were planning on using £172 million of funding on several major transport projects. [15] These included:

Ticketing

Merseytravel are responsible for the management of local, reduced cost, integrated ticketing systems, and as part of this issue the ITSO-compatible MetroCard smartcard, on to which certain local travel passes are loaded. [16] They are also the body responsible in the Liverpool City Region for providing and funding concessionary travel for the elderly and disabled, through the English National Concessionary Bus Travel Scheme. For those not at the present Pension age, but over the former applicable ages of 60 and 65, for men and women respectively, Merseytravel are funded to operate a localised version of the scheme.

Area system

For ticketing purposes, Merseyside, hitherto, has historically been divided into four areas:

Out of current city region combined area:

Each area is further subdivided into zones. There is considerable overlap of area A and C, with all parts of Knowsley lying in area A also being covered by area C. This region is designated as zone A3/C2/C3.

Two rail-only areas exist, for stations covered by Merseyrail outside the current Liverpool City Region. Area F covers the Northern line from Maghull to Ormskirk, whilst Area G covers the section of the Wirral line from Hooton to Ellesmere Port and Chester.

Until January 2008, a "cross-Mersey" area E existed, which covered the central areas of Liverpool and Birkenhead, as well as the ferry terminal at Seacombe. Tickets were commonly issued for areas B and E covering the whole of Wirral together with Liverpool city centre. Birkenhead railway stations covered by area E were:

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Merseyside</span> County of England

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. 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).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Merseyrail</span> Commuter rail system in England

Merseyrail is a commuter rail network which serves Merseyside and adjacent areas of Cheshire and Lancashire. 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 25.5 million passengers in the 2022/2023 statistical period.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Liverpool Central railway station</span> Railway station in Liverpool, England

Liverpool Central railway station in Liverpool, England, forms a central hub of the Merseyrail network, being on both the Northern Line and the Wirral Line. The station is located underground on two levels, below the site of a former mainline terminus. It is the busiest station in Liverpool, though considerably smaller than Lime Street station, the mainline terminus, and the busiest station to operate solely on the Merseyrail network. The station is the busiest underground station outside London serving 40,000 people daily. The station in passengers per platform is the busiest underground railway station in the United Kingdom at 5,217,547 per platform per annum and laying third in all stations, underground or overground.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Liverpool James Street railway station</span> Underground railway station in Liverpool, UK

Liverpool James Street is a railway station located in the centre of Liverpool, England; it is situated on the Wirral Line of the Merseyrail network. James Street is an underground station, with access to the platforms via lifts from the booking hall. At certain times, the platforms are accessed via a pedestrian tunnel from the India Buildings on Water Street. As of 2013/14, James Street was the fifth-busiest station on the Merseyrail network.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Northern line (Merseyrail)</span> Line part of the Merseyrail network

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).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wirral line</span> Commuter rail route in Merseyside, England

The Wirral line is one of two commuter rail routes operated by Merseyrail and centred on Merseyside, England, the other being the Northern line.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Borderlands line</span> Railway line between Bidston, England and Wrexham, Wales

The Borderlands line, also known as the Bidston–Wrexham or Wrexham–Bidston line, is a railway line between Bidston on the Wirral Peninsula in England and Wrexham Central in the north-east of Wales. Passenger train services are part of the Wales & Borders franchise and are operated by Transport for Wales Rail. The line connects to the Merseyrail network at Bidston, the North Wales Coast Line at Shotton and the Shrewsbury–Chester line at Wrexham General. Parts of the line in Wales are used by freight trains, serving Deeside Industrial Park and the Hanson Cement works to the south of Buckley.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Birkenhead Park railway station</span> Railway station on the West Kirby & New Brighton branches of the Wirral line in England

Birkenhead Park railway station is a station serving the town of Birkenhead, in Merseyside, England. It lies on the Wirral Line of the Merseyrail network.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Birkenhead North railway station</span> Railway station on the West Kirby & New Brighton branches of the Wirral line in England

Birkenhead North railway station serves the town of Birkenhead, in Merseyside, England. The station is situated on the Wirral Line of the Merseyrail network, close to the junction of the New Brighton and West Kirby branches. Birkenhead North TMD, situated just to the west of the station, is the main traction maintenance depot for the Merseyrail fleet.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">MTL (transport company)</span> 1992–2000 British transport operator

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wallasey Village railway station</span> Railway station serving Wallasey, Merseyside, England

Wallasey Village railway station serves the Wallasey Village suburb of Wallasey, in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the Wirral Line 6¼ miles (9 km) west of Liverpool Lime Street on the Merseyrail network.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wallasey Grove Road railway station</span> Railway station serving Wallasey, Wirral, Merseyside, England

Wallasey Grove Road railway station serves the town of Wallasey in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the Wirral Line 6+1⁄2 miles (10.5 km) west of Liverpool Lime Street on the Merseyrail network.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aintree railway station</span> Railway station on the Ormskirk Branch of the Northern Line in Liverpool, England

Aintree railway station is a railway station that serves the village of Aintree, Merseyside, England. It is on the Ormskirk branch of the Merseyrail network's Northern Line. Until 1968 it was known as Aintree Sefton Arms after a nearby public house. The station's design reflects that it is the closest station to Aintree Racecourse, where the annual Grand National horse race takes place.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Woodside, Merseyside</span> Human settlement in England

Woodside is an area of Birkenhead in the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral in Merseyside, England. It is situated opposite Liverpool Pier Head across the River Mersey.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">City Line (Merseytravel)</span> Railway network brand in the UK

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.

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Merseybus</span> Former major bus operator in Merseyside, England

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 would be 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 would later be sold along with all MTL operations to Arriva on 17 February 2000, and operations today trade under Arriva North West.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "MERSEYSIDE PASSENGER TRANSPORT EXECUTIVE: Administrative / biographical background". The National Archives. Retrieved 2 January 2022.
  2. ↑ "Proposal to establish a combined authority for Greater Merseyside" (PDF). Department for Communities and Local Government. November 2013. Retrieved 8 December 2013.
  3. ↑ Thorp, Liam (30 May 2021). "Closer look at the plans for a connected public transport network". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 6 June 2021.
  4. ↑ There'll be £13,500 along for bus drivers employees The Guardian 25 January 2000
  5. ↑ Recommended Cash Offer for MTL Services Arriva 18 February 2000
  6. ↑ Final Results Year Ended 31 December 1999 Arriva 8 March 2000
  7. 1 2 House of Common Briefing Paper SN6521 Railways: franchising policy, 30 September 2015, Louise Butcher
  8. ↑ Merseyrail franchise goes Dutch The Daily Telegraph 24 April 2003
  9. ↑ First Stadler Class 777 arrives on Merseyside The Railway Magazine issue 1427 February 2020 page 10
  10. ↑ Arriva chosen to run and expand Northern franchise from next year Rail Technology Magazine 9 December 2015
  11. ↑ "THE BEATLES STORY LIMITED: Persons with significant control". Companies House. Retrieved 2 January 2022.
  12. ↑ "Publications - Information - Merseytravel - Keeping Merseyside on the Move". 7 June 2011. Archived from the original on 7 June 2011.
  13. ↑ "£15 billion boost to Liverpool City Region economy from full high speed rail connections' says Linking Liverpool Campaign". MerseyTravel. Retrieved 10 November 2016.
  14. ↑ "St James / Chinatown Stations - Initial Demand and Benefit Summary - Executive Summary" (PDF). Merseytravel. Retrieved 9 January 2019.
  15. ↑ Tyrrell, Nick (30 August 2019). "Merseyside set to get two new train stations and replacement ferries". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 31 August 2019.
  16. ↑ "MetroCard and Walrus | Merseytravel".

53°24′13.9″N2°59′33.9″W / 53.403861°N 2.992750°W / 53.403861; -2.992750

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