Rail infrastructure needed for a possible NW Olympics in 2040

[urbophile]

North of England bid to host Olympics as Government issue update

The plan was backed earlier this year by northern leaders including Steve Rotheram and Andy Burnham

www.liverpoolecho.co.uk

A bid to stage the Olympic and Paralympic Games in the north of England in the 2040s is to enter the initial assessment phase, the Government has announced.

The Government has commissioned UK Sport to conduct the assessment as part of its ambition to drive regeneration in towns and cities through sport. The assessment will consider costs, socio-economic benefits and the chances of success. If it did succeed, it would be the first Games staged in Britain since London 2012.

The bid was backed back in February by Liverpool City Region Mayor Steve Rotheram, opening up the possibility of sporting events being held in Merseyside.

There is a proposal backed by the two Metro Mayors, for Liverpool and Manchester together to host the Olympics in 2040 or thereabouts.

The Post says that it would need a vast improvement to the transport network between the two cities. This is desperately needed in any case, but this possibility adds urgency and further justification.

One improvement at the Liverpool end would be to re-open the Waterloo (? - northern) tunnel from Edge Hill to an underground station north of London Road which would take regional trains. Local trains (ie the current City Line services) could be integrated into Merseyrail via the Wapping tunnel as originally envisaged.

On the Rail outside London thread Bletchleyite has outlined some suggestions for this, namely:

• 2tph Ormskirk-Wigan NW (dual voltage 777s with pantographs)
• 2tph Ormskirk-Warrington BQ via St Helens Jn (dual voltage 777s with pantographs)
• 4tph Headbolt Lane-Airport via Mossley Hill (this would be the easiest way to get rail to the airport and the batteries would be useful at both ends)
• 4tph Southport-Hunts Cross (and on to Warrington Central if the Metrolink/Merseyrail option is selected for the CLC) - third rail 777s (add batteries if extended to Warrington C)

Moving regional services onto Merseyrail would not be good, it would lose its punctuality from being largely isolated. You would create another Castlefield - no thanks!

This is a good idea but really the core Merseyrail service should double in frequency.

 

[Zomboid]

The events would be 3-4 weeks in one summer. Significant upgrades would need to justify themselves 363 days a year.

Is there any suggestion of where the athletics/ swimming/ skateboarding/ speed knitting will be held? A bit hard to imagine the transport requirements without that important information.

 

[pokemonsuper9]

I think the core of this would have to be NPR/HS3/whatever you want to call it, taking the fast trains off the Chat Moss and CLC lines, freeing space for more stopping services.

 

[urbophile]

The events would be 3-4 weeks in one summer. Significant upgrades would need to justify themselves 363 days a year.

Well quite.The London Olympics were the spur to the massive redevelopment of the Stratford area. Presumably the mayors think that similar long-term development would happen in both cities.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 18 May 2026 ==

I think the core of this would have to be NPR/HS3/whatever you want to call it, taking the fast trains off the Chat Moss and CLC lines, freeing space for more stopping services.

yes, which raises the question of where they would terminate. NPR and high speed trains would naturally go to Lime Street but other regional and long-distance services might then be displaced.

All of these possibilities have been talked about already; the Olympics, should they happen, would give an additional impetus but would not be the prime justification.

 

[pokemonsuper9]

yes, which raises the question of where they would terminate. NPR and high speed trains would naturally go to Lime Street but other regional and long-distance services might then be displaced.

The tunnel mentioned earlier (Edge Hill - Merseyrail) might be a good call for the regionals.
Of course the punctuality might have some things to say about that but that's a good way to serve Liverpool without taking up high level capacity.

 

[6Gman]

The events would be 3-4 weeks in one summer. Significant upgrades would need to justify themselves 363 days a year.

Is there any suggestion of where the athletics/ swimming/ skateboarding/ speed knitting will be held? A bit hard to imagine the transport requirements without that important information.

The nearest serious rowing facility is in Nottingham.

The nearest serious sailing facility is probably Pwllheli.

May I be the first to suggest this would justify reopening the Peak line and Bangor to Afon Wen?



Seriously, it would probably be quite a dispersed Games so a fascinating exercise. I almost wish I was back in Train Planning, but since I'll be in my 80s by then perhaps I won't be shortlisted for any role.

 

[NER1621]

The fantasy proposal is for the Olympics to be held in the “north of England”, not Liverpool & Manchester: the newspaper report linked to in the OP is putting a Liverpool and Manchester spin on it because those two metro mayors saw political capital to be gained by an early endorsement. But Leeds MPs have already also started to speak up about games events being held there, and I doubt that Newcastle, Sheffield and York(!) will be far behind. So micro-planning for improvements to Merseyrail better be put on hold until there’s more detail in the overall plan.
(And London has already started whining about it.)

 

[pokemonsuper9]

But Leeds MPs have already also started to speak up about games events being held there, and I doubt that Newcastle, Sheffield and York(!) will be far behind.

Sounds like a proper HS3 will be in order then.


Doing some quick maths if we want HS3 done by 2040, based on the progress of HS2, we need to start about 15 years ago

 

[GRALISTAIR]

Electrify the CLC lines for a really good start!

 

[urbophile]

The fantasy proposal is for the Olympics to be held in the “north of England”, not Liverpool & Manchester: the newspaper report linked to in the OP is putting a Liverpool and Manchester spin on it because those two metro mayors saw political capital to be gained by an early endorsement. But Leeds MPs have already also started to speak up about games events being held there, and I doubt that Newcastle, Sheffield and York(!) will be far behind. So micro-planning for improvements to Merseyrail better be put on hold until there’s more detail in the overall plan.
(And London has already started whining about it.)

Well if they were really going to be in the north Newcastle is the only contender (with Sunderland as a side kick). But as Burnham (as long as he remains) and Rotheram have already put their oar in it may well end up as the north-west midlands Olympics

 

[WAO]

Electrify the CLC lines for a really good start!

Unfortunately, see below.

Not just the MMLEP that's been Heidied/Starmered.

https://www.thepwi.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/CLC-Line-of-Route-Upgrade_W-Hastie-A-Paton.pdf

WAO

 

[cle]

The Paris Olympics had events all over France - and even surfing in Tahiti - but it was still the Paris Olympics. World Cups are countries / paired countries, but Olympics, especially Summer Games are predicated (in nomenclature) on a single city - typically where the main athletics and ceremony stadium would be.

Would that be the Etihad (per Commonwealth) - or is it not big enough? And the new Old Trafford would be the move? Either way, it'd be the Manchester Games - really - which also aligns to the airport so it makes sense.

But doing as many events across the region, and especially in Liverpool for historical and cultural reasons (and water access!) would be ideal to spread the benefits - and the loads.

As to the rail links, if HS2 was there via NPR - that would cover most things off, I agree. Met extensions, a more S-Bahn type electric metro network, and yes something with the CLC (tram / Merseyrail split or full wiring and a fast metro service) - but the Manchester economy needs these things more than the Games might do...

 

[The Planner]

Unfortunately, see below.

Not just the MMLEP that's been Heidied/Starmered.

https://www.thepwi.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/11/CLC-Line-of-Route-Upgrade_W-Hastie-A-Paton.pdf

WAO

Depends what you want out of it. If its capacity you ignore the wires.

 

[Magdalia]

The focal point of any Olympic Games is the stadium that stages the opening ceremony, the closing ceremony, and the track and field athletics. The stadium needs to be big enough to have an IAAF compliant athletics track and capacity for 80k spectators.

The transport infrastructure then needs to be able to handle the 80k spectators while also maintaining priority routes for competitors, officials and dignitaries. In an Olympic Games there are a lot more of those than for a football match.

No meaningful planning for the transport infrastructure can take place until the location of the main stadium is known.

 

[6Gman]

The Paris Olympics had events all over France - and even surfing in Tahiti - but it was still the Paris Olympics. World Cups are countries / paired countries, but Olympics, especially Summer Games are predicated (in nomenclature) on a single city - typically where the main athletics and ceremony stadium would be.

Would that be the Etihad (per Commonwealth) - or is it not big enough? And the new Old Trafford would be the move? Either way, it'd be the Manchester Games - really - which also aligns to the airport so it makes sense.

But doing as many events across the region, and especially in Liverpool for historical and cultural reasons (and water access!) would be ideal to spread the benefits - and the loads.

As to the rail links, if HS2 was there via NPR - that would cover most things off, I agree. Met extensions, a more S-Bahn type electric metro network, and yes something with the CLC (tram / Merseyrail split or full wiring and a fast metro service) - but the Manchester economy needs these things more than the Games might do...

The 2002 Commonwealth Games, as I recall, required little or no infrastructure improvements.

Beyond the 395s being called Javelins and gaining names did London see much specific rail infrastructure in 2012 (appreciating that it was something of a catalyst for the much-needed and possibly inevitable regeneration in Stratford)?

The Etihad was rebuilt (as planned) after 2002 to be purely a football stadium but it (or a new Old Trafford) could well host opening/closing ceremonies.

The main problem with any Olympic Games is that they need an 80k athletics stadium (when other athletic events struggle to attract 5,000) and a 10k swimming venue (when other swimming events only need 3,000 or so). How you do that without being left with white elephants is a challenge.

The football (and Rugby 7s) can be held at venues well used to handling large crowds.

As far as the other sports are concerned we are talking of venues holding no more than a few thousand spectators. If Leeds, for example, hosted the hockey, badminton and table tennis it's hardly likely to overwhelm public transport!

 

[WAO]

Depends what you want out of it. If its capacity you ignore the wires.

The CLC alternative is NPR of course, costing 100 times the CLC proposal, getting to Leeds, yes, but effectively missing out central Manchester! HS2 is about capacity and certainly not wireless.

The North needs more industry (as Burnham says), not more publicly funded, sports (or rail) white elephants.

Northern Olympics would need a general rail improvement of spread investment, not a single, vanity, big-ticket project.

WAO

 

[Zomboid]

I'd imagine that as the biggest city in "The North", Manchester/ Salford would be the centre of the exercise and where the athletics stadium would be located. The other events could be spread around Liverpool, Sheffield & Leeds, but none of those events would draw the kinds of crowds that would demand big infrastructure interventions.

The answer is probably around getting people to Manchester, which probably adds up to building the HS2 Western leg and ensuring that access to/ from Manchester Airport is adequate.

 

[GRALISTAIR]

The CLC alternative is NPR of course, costing 100 times the CLC proposal, getting to Leeds, yes, but effectively missing out central Manchester! HS2 is about capacity and certainly not wireless.

The North needs more industry (as Burnham says), not more publicly funded, sports (or rail) white elephants.

Northern Olympics would need a general rail improvement of spread investment, not a single, vanity, big-ticket project.

WAO

I do agree with you. NPR would be late and over budget.