By Alistair Gordon, Chief Executive of Keolis in the UK & Ireland
After years of delay and uncertainty, the Government has now given formal backing to Northern Powerhouse Rail (NPR), pledging up to £45bn to tackle what has been widely described as chronic underinvestment in the North’s railways. More than £1bn will fund the development of a detailed three-stage plan linking Liverpool to Newcastle, with Yorkshire firmly at its heart.
For communities across Leeds, Bradford, Sheffield and York, this is more than a transport announcement, it’s a signal about economic intent. Businesses need access to wider labour markets, young people need reliable routes to colleges and apprenticeships and families need transport that makes opportunity feel within reach.
The ambition is significant, but infrastructure of this scale will only fulfil its promise if it works for the places between the cities, as well as strengthening mass transit within the cities themselves.
Integration must be built in from the start
Faster intercity services are long overdue. Yorkshire has felt the drag of weak east-west connectivity for decades, with journeys across the Pennines often slow, unreliable and capacity constrained and NPR has the potential to change that.
Yet linking major urban centres is only part of the challenge. A new or upgraded station in Bradford or Leeds will not, on its own, transform daily life. Its impact will depend on whether people in Huddersfield, Wakefield, Halifax and surrounding towns can reach it easily, affordably and reliably.
That requires proper integration with local bus and light rail networks from the outset.
Timetables must be aligned so connections are dependable rather than hopeful. Ticketing should be simple and unified, not a patchwork of separate systems and fare structures. Stations must be planned as genuine mobility hubs, with safe walking routes, well-designed bus interchanges and clear passenger information.
We have seen what happens when this principle is applied. In Greater Manchester, Metrolink forms part of a coordinated regional system rather than a standalone line. In Dijon and Bordeaux, bus routes were reshaped around real travel patterns, feeding tram corridors and extending the reach of high-capacity infrastructure. In each case, integration ensured that investment benefited whole communities, not just central districts.
Early operator involvement is therefore critical, as without operational insight infrastructure risks costly revisions.
A catalyst for wider change
NPR also presents Yorkshire with an opportunity to accelerate decarbonisation. Electrified rail reduces emissions, but the surrounding network must keep pace. Cleaner bus fleets, upgraded depots and investment in skills should be planned alongside rail expansion.
Across our global bus operations – 24,000 vehicles, a growing number of which are zero or low emission – coordinated planning between authorities and operators has reduced risk and improved delivery. When rail and bus strategies are aligned, the whole system becomes more attractive and more sustainable.
There is also the proven fact that fragmented systems deter discretionary travel and limit growth whereas integrated networks spread the benefits of investment beyond city cores into market towns and suburbs.
For Yorkshire, this is not simply about shaving minutes off a journey between Leeds and Manchester. It is about ensuring that communities across the region feel tangible improvements in their daily lives.
So NPR’s success will be judged not only by faster trains, but by whether it strengthens local economies and reconnects communities across Yorkshire and beyond.
