City of Culture train route to be scrapped

A rail service linking two former Yorkshire City of Culture winners is to be scrapped by a train operator in a bid to tackle what it said was "poor reliability".

Northern plans to axe the Hull to Halifax route, which stops at Leeds and Bradford, due to regular delays which it said often ended with the service being terminated at Bradford or Leeds.

To tackle the issue, the Hull train will now terminate at Leeds – no longer continuing on to Bradford and Halifax. Passengers wanting to travel to Hull from Bradford would instead have to change in Leeds, a spokesperson said.

But other local routes would be improved as part of the shake-up, according to Northern.

Hull was the UK City of Culture in 2017, with Bradford holding the honour in 2025.

The proposed changes were discussed by West Yorkshire Combined Authority's Weaver Network Board on Thursday, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

A report to the board said: "The Hull–Leeds–Bradford–Halifax service has experienced poor reliability for some time.

"Delays occurring on either side of Leeds often affect the wider route, meaning services are regularly terminated early at Leeds or Bradford and do not reach Halifax as planned.

"To improve performance, Northern has proposed that Hull services would terminate at Leeds and no longer continue to Bradford and Halifax.

"To maintain connectivity, the Bradford–Halifax–Huddersfield service would be extended to start and finish at Leeds."

The report said members of the combined authority believed there was a "strong case" for the changes.

Peter Carlill, Labour councillor for Calverley and Farsley, raised concerns about the impact on rail passengers using New Pudsey station.

He said the withdrawal of the service would leave a "gap" at peak times in the morning commute.

He said: "I regretfully accept the loss of this service if it does bring wider benefits."

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