Marie Tidball MP asks Prime Minister for two trains and hour on the Penistone Line

Marie Tidball MP, Member of Parliament for Penistone and Stocksbridge, asked Prime Minister Keir Starmer, in Parliament, to discuss securing funding for the second phase of the Penistone Line Upgrade Scheme, to deliver two trains an hour for this route.

During Prime Minister’s Questions, Marie Tidball MP highlighted to the Prime Minister that the Penistone Line is “the spine that connects South Yorkshire and West Yorkshire, coursing through eight constituencies and serving half a million people.”

She told Parliament:

“When I was growing up, my dad opened Silkstone Common station as a Dodworth councillor. I want my legacy to be ‘Two trains an hour Tidball’ for our Penistone line.”

She asked the Prime Minister “to discuss how we can secure funding for the second phase of the Penistone line upgrade scheme to achieve two services an hour?”

In response to the local MP, Prime Minister Keir Starmer told the Commons:

“We are working with Kirklees council to prepare the business case for the first phase of upgrading the line, and I know that the Transport Secretary will be happy to discuss the details of that with my Hon. Friend.” He paid tribute to Dr Tidball’s championing of the Penistone Line, describing her as “a dedicated campaigner on this and so many other issues.”

The Government has already committed £48 million for Phase One of the Penistone Line Upgrade Scheme, which will increase line speeds and reliability. Phase Two of the Upgrade Scheme would secure two trains an hour along the route.

Marie Tidball MP asked her question following the government’s announcement to fully fund £45 billion to deliver Northern Powerhouse Rail - the biggest investment in rail connectivity in a generation. Northern Powerhouse Rail will deliver a ‘turn up and go’ railway for the Northern Growth Corridor: Liverpool, Manchester, Bradford, Leeds, Sheffield, and York; with regular services onward to Newcastle via Darlington and Durham, Hull, and Chester for North Wales connections. The rest of the North will benefit from these connectivity links, including from improved access to Manchester Airport.

During her question to the Prime Minister, Marie Tidball MP said she was “delighted by [this] Northern Powerhouse Rail announcement, [which is] a downpayment on the North of England’s future.”

In his response, Keir Starmer highlighted that “today we are announcing a transformation in journeys across the North. Of course, this was promised many times by the Conservatives but never delivered. We are taking action and delivering.”

Following the exchange, Marie Tidball MP, said:

“The government’s landmark announcement to deliver Northern Powerhouse Rail demonstrates that our government is serious about finally giving the North the transport links we deserve.
The Penistone Line service currently only runs once an hour – South and West Yorkshire need better than this. On top of the Phase One changes, I know what an incredible difference two trains an hour along the route would make to constituents living right across our communities.
Since I was elected, ensuring the full delivery and upgrade of the Penistone Line has been one of my top priorities. I’ll continue working closely with fantastic community organisations such as the Penistone Line Partnership, as well as our local councils in Barnsley and Sheffield and South Yorkshire Mayor, Oliver Coppard, to ensure the line is upgraded fully as part of the government’s commitment to bringing transport equality to Yorkshire, for everyone living across our communities.”