Determination to support Eurovision behind decision to operate ‘airport express’ today despite strike, says Northern
Northern is operating a ‘Eurovision express’ from Manchester Airport to Liverpool Lime Street today despite industrial action by ASLEF forcing all other services on its network to be cancelled.
The hourly service, which began at 7am this morning and runs until 7pm tonight, was chosen to help international visitors arriving at Manchester Airport get to the event in Liverpool.
Tricia Williams, chief operating officer at Northern, said: “As a Liverpudlian myself, I know how proud the city is to have been chosen to host the Eurovision Song Contest on behalf of the people of Ukraine.
“International events of this calibre are a real boost to the region and so it was disappointing to see the return of industrial action and the disruption that brings to passengers.
“On this occasion, we thought it important to ensure international visitors that have made the journey across Europe to support their country’s representative could still get those last few miles over to Merseyside for the final.
“We expect all services to be at or near capacity from the point they leave Manchester Airport, which is why we’ve made the decision to run them ‘express’ from the city to Liverpool Lime Street.”
Train operators and Network Rail have worked in partnership to provide additional services to Liverpool for the duration of Eurovision, celebrations for which opened on Sunday (7 May) and finish with the Grand Final tomorrow (13 May).
For more information about travel around Liverpool during Eurovision, please visit: https://www.liverpoolcityregion-ca.gov.uk/ticket-to-ride-how-to-travel-around-as-eurovision-celebrations-approach.
For more information about the upcoming ASLEF and RMT strikes, customers should visit: www.northernrailway.co.uk/strikes.
This month’s strike action comes ahead of Northern introducing its new summer timetable on Sunday 21 May. Customers who make regular journeys on the same train times are advised to check before they travel as some services may have been re-timed. For more information, visit: www.northernrailway.co.uk/timetablechange.