RAIL passengers in Northwich and Knutsford could finally see a half-hourly service to Manchester and Chester, and travel direct to North Wales, according to a new report.

The Manchester Recovery Task Force was set up last January – with the backing of the Department for Transport, Network Rail and Transport for the North – to improve the city's rail services.

It has now published a report with three options for improving the reliability of the rail network, without spending any money on extra tracks or signals, by changing the timetable in May 2022 at the earliest.

One of the options – Option C – includes changing the Manchester to North Wales service from its current route via Warrington to the Mid Cheshire Line.

These trains would run non-stop from Chester to Northwich, then call at Knutsford, Altrincham, and Stockport on the way to Manchester Piccadilly.

The Mid Cheshire Rail Users Association (MCRUA) estimates that this would cut 15 minutes off the journey time to Manchester from Northwich or 10 minutes from Knutsford.

It would be an additional service to the existing Mid Cheshire Line train, which stops at more stations, while it would also mean Northwich and Knutsford residents could catch a direct service to the North Wales coast.

Northwich passengers could travel to Chester with no stops in between

Northwich passengers could travel to Chester with no stops in between

John Oates, chairman of Mid Cheshire Rail Users Association, said: "We are very pleased to see the report of this task force and especially Option C which offers the improvements we have been seeking for many years.

“We hope that the task force chooses Option C and we look forward to working with train planners in the next stage to get the right service pattern for our mid Cheshire stations."

MCRUA, along with MPs Esther McVey and Mike Amesbury, have repeatedly made the case for a second train per hour along the Mid Cheshire Line.

That was promised by Arriva Rail North when it won the Northern franchise in 2015 but never materialised – with delays to rolling stock becoming available from other parts of the network, plus signalling issues in Greater Manchester and outside Chester, all given as reasons why the service could not be delivered.

The Manchester Recovery Task Force report says: "Passengers have been experiencing poor performance to, from and through central Manchester for too long.

"Better performance in the Manchester area will have far reaching beneficial impacts across the north of England rail network."

The Government is now holding a public consultation on the Manchester Recovery Task Force's options, and mid Cheshire residents are encouraged to respond.

Visit gov.uk/government/consultations/timetable-options-to-improve-rail-performance-in-the-north-of-england