PM challenged over Manchester to Whitby train time

The government has responded after Andy Burnham was challenged to travel by rail from Manchester to Whitby and back.

Raising the issue of poor rail and bus links to the North Yorkshire coast, the challenge was posed by Whitby councillor Phil Trumper last week.

According to online ticket firm Trainline, the quickest train from Manchester to Whitby takes four hours and 19 minutes, with the return journey taking four hours and 12 minutes. The average round trip, however, takes closer to 11 hours.

In response to the challenge a Department for Transport spokesperson said it was investing £11bn to improve journey times across the Pennines

Conservative councillor Trumper said: "What is the King of the North, based in Manchester, doing to improve transport on the coast?

"I would invite the new prime minister to travel from Manchester to Whitby by rail and see if he gets there at a suitable time and then get back to Manchester on the same day."

According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, a government spokesperson said in response that work was underway to explore more frequent Middlesbrough to Whitby services.

They also highlighted a £45bn commitment to upgrade railway services in the north.

The Department for Transport spokesperson said: "We're working with regional leaders to explore more frequent Middlesbrough to Whitby services while investing £11bn to improve journey times across the Pennines, as well as scoping out wider connections between major northern cities including York and Manchester, through Northern Powerhouse Rail.

"This £45bn commitment will deliver the biggest upgrade to the north's railway services in a generation and provide better access to the opportunities that drive growth, get people working, and put more money in families' pockets."

David Skaith, the elected Mayor of York and North Yorkshire, said he was "always working on how we can improve people's transport across the county".

He told a meeting of the Scarborough and Whitby Area Committee last week: "We've pushed hard on improving the connectivity between York and Scarborough already, which will come in time.

"We always want to improve rail and our bus connectivity because that is the most sustainable and still affordable way for most people to travel around the region."

However, he said to councillors more investment was "incredibly expensive".

Alison Hume, the MP for Scarborough and Whitby, said she was "tearing her hair out" over the slow pace of rail improvements.

She said: "I'm afraid I haven't managed to land any kind of rail improvement from Sleights to Whitby, even though I promised that as a candidate.

"Bus improvements will be coming, and I'm working tirelessly behind the scenes on improving the train services from Scarborough to York and Whitby to Middlesbrough."

A half-hourly train service between York and Scarborough will start from December 2028.

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