Its place in railway history is assured because of its part in the Liverpool and Manchester Railway, the world's first inter-city railway which took goods and passengers to local cotton mills and factories in the 19th century.
But will Greater Manchester's railway heritage and transport connections be strong enough for one of its towns to be named the host site for the new headquarters of Great British Railways, the new overarching body that will administer the infrastructure and running of much of the UK network from 2023?
Transport Secretary Grant Shapps was joined by noted rail buff Michael Portillo to launch a contest to host the new HQ, which will be based outside of London and bring a number of high-skilled jobs to the winning location. With a shortlist to be drawn up in May the public will be involved in the final choice of location, but the government retains an executive power of decision before it reveals the winner this summer.
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The new public body, GBR, is a central part of the redesign of the railway management, outlined in the Wiliams-Shapps Plan for Rail – a radical reform set to dismantle the current franchise system of operations in the UK. GBR will integrate the stewardship of infrastructure and oversee most aspects of passenger planning.
And after applications closed, a host of late entrants pushed the long list up to 42 candidates claiming to meet the criteria of prominent railway heritage and meeting the UK government’s desire to ‘level-up’ the national economy.
While many had widespread local support, the process has also seen furious rows break out over who was backing which bids and where the proposed location should be. And across the North of England, a host of towns and cities believe that they alone have the railway heritage to deserve hosting the new base.
The way the decision has been made has also attracted criticism as another example of a 'beauty contest' where local leaders are forced to spend time and energy bidding against each other for funding or powers. The Northern Agenda political newsletter has run the rule over the contenders from Greater Manchester and the wider North, as local leaders try to whip up support.
Bolton
In Bolton, the location of the proposed HQ has led to a huge political row after it emerged that the town itself had been chosen by the Tory-run council over neighbouring Horwich, which is steeped in railway history.
At a council meeting this week a member of the Horwich and Blackrod First Independents party, who have three members, has accused Conservative leader Martyn Cox of a ‘betrayal’ of the people of Horwich and accused the Conservatives, with whom his party has a working arrangement to help keep them in power, of making ‘disastrous decisions’.
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Cllr David Grant, who believes any bid for the head office should have been based at the former loco works in Horwich, said he would be supporting moves by the town council there to withdraw support for the bid.
He accused the Tory leadership of ‘hijacking’ the idea for a bid from a member of Horwich’s town council. And to gasps in the town hall he tore to pieces the council expression of interest bid document in front of Coun Cox saying ‘this is what the people of Horwich think of your bid’.
Cllr Cox said a move to withdraw support by the town council would ‘predjudice every ward in this borough’ and called it ‘one of the most disgraceful acts that I’ve ever heard of’.
Heywood:
The Greater Manchester town's station is not part of the national network, but is the most easterly point on the East Lancashire Railway (ELR) - a 12-mile heritage steam railway with stops including Rawtenstall, Bury and Ramsbottom.
Now the town has thrown its hat in the ring with a joint bid from Conservative Heywood and Middleton MP Chris Clarkson and local Tory councillors Alan McCarthy and Jacqui Beswick.
Heywood had many engineering firms. There was a major private Railway Wagon building and repairing firm, Standard Wagon, based at Green Lane next to the ELR Heywood station. With the help of Rochdale council, a bid was put together to highlight the town's ‘proud history’ - and its strategic location as a possible future home for a major organisation such as GBR.
Rochdale council leader Neil Emmott has also backed the bid – but was rather more circumspect regarding the government’s commitment to ‘levelling up’. “If the government is serious about levelling up, then giving this bid the green light and making Heywood the home of Great British Railways would be a welcome step in the right direction,” he said.
Greater Manchester:
One of the bids made to the Department for Transport is for the HQ to be based in Greater Manchester - minus Rochdale and Bolton as they already have separate bids.
But little is known about the application, who is supporting it and where the proposed HQ would be. The Northern Agenda approached Manchester's investment promotion agency MIDAS, which is leading the bid, to ask for details of the bid, but officials declined to comment.
Stockton-on-Tees:
Journalist, broadcaster and former Cabinet minister, Michael Portillo, is one of those backing the bid for Stockton to become the base of GBR's headquarters.
Mr Portillo, who currently presents railway documentaries such ‘Great British Railway Journeys’ and ‘Great Continental Railway Journeys’, has previously called Stockton “the start of the world’s railways” owing to the fact it was the home of Stockton & Darlington Railway (S&DR); the world’s first steam operated public railway.
A dinner held in Stockton Town Hall in 1810 led to the creation of the S&DR. In 1822, the first rail was laid for the S&DR at St John’s Well in Stockton. In 1825, the first ever rail passenger was booked at the world’s oldest ticket office in Stockton.
The most vocal supporter of the bid is Stockton is local Tory MP Matt Vickers, who says: “Stockton’s intrinsic link to the world’s railways makes it the perfect choice for the new headquarters of Great British Rail.
“Railway is in Stockton’s DNA. It was here where the first rail of the Stockton & Darlington Railway was laid almost two decades ago and the first ever rail passenger was booked at the ticket office in St John’s Well."
Darlington
The North East town is described by local Tory MP Peter Gibson as having "a unique and unmatched connection to our railways".
He told the Commons recently: "It all began in 1819, when the novel idea of using a steam-powered locomotive to pull passenger carts was first mulled over. Indeed, although the House legislated in 1821 to allow the creation of the Stockton and Darlington railway, it was in our town that the idea of a modern passenger railway was conceived between Edward Pease, Jonathan Backhouse and the famous George Stephenson.
"Stephenson’s ingenious Locomotion No.1, built in the north-east thanks to the financial backing of the Pease family, would pull the first passenger carts over Darlington’s Skerne bridge in 1825."
Darlington council leader Heather Scott, also a Conservative, said: “As the home of the world’s first steam-powered passenger railway, with the 200 th anniversary of that historic first journey now just a few years away, Darlington truly has a rich railway heritage to be proud of.
“And with great progress being made on the once-in-a-generation redevelopment of our historic Bank Top Station, Darlington’s status as a railway town for the 21 st Century and beyond is assured."
Durham
Though the bid for the GBR HQ is for the historic city of Durham, it was submitted by Durham County Council who said its proposal backed by local MP Mary Foy would boost the economy and bring countless jobs to the area.
Alongside the economic benefits, the county authority has also pledged to link this scheme with Locomotion in Shildon, Hitachi in Newton Aycliffe, which secured a HS2 deal at the end of last year and pairing it with its City of Culture 2025 bid, which saw it shortlisted into the final four on Friday.
Cllr Elizabeth Scott of Durham County Council said: “This is a fantastic opportunity for County Durham which would further cement our historic links to the rail industry.
“Being named the new home of Great British Railways would bring more skilled jobs to the county, delivering a significant boost to the local economy in the process.
"While there is no doubt for us that County Durham would provide a worthy home for the rail industry, we have specifically submitted our bid as we believe it links perfectly with our aspiration to secure the title of UK City of Culture 2025.
Newcastle
Newcastle is bidding to bring the new headquarters of the new Great British Railways body to the city, using its "unique place as the area that gave birth to the railways almost 200 years ago".
The city has joined a number of communities in bidding to host the new public body that will integrate the UK’s railways as part of a move away from the privatised rail network. The new body would own the country’s rail infrastructure, collect fare revenue and plan fares and timetables.
A bid by the city to house the organisation is now being finalised, with the Stephenson Quarter - where the Robert Stephenson & Co. Locomotive Works was established in 1823 as the first manufacturing facility of its kind in the world - one of the possible locations.
The presence of a major railways training centre in Gateshead, run by Newcastle College, also adds weight to the bid. City council leader Nick Forbes: “The North East was the birthplace of the railways - we sent locomotives all over the world from the Pattern Shop on Stephenson Quarter so what better place to locate the headquarters of Great British Railways?"
The bid to bring the Great British Headquarters headquarters here in the region is being led by Invest Newcastle, part of the Newcastle Gateshead Initiative, and backed by a number of key businesses in the region.
Barrow-in-Furness
Simon Fell, Tory MP for Barrow and Furness, led the bid and said last month it would "cement Barrow’s status as the true home of British rail".
He added: “The story of Barrow is the story of the Furness Railway. The discovery of iron ore showed the potential of Barrow to the world, and Henry Schneider’s railway opened it up.
“175 years ago Barrow was a hamlet – with a dozen families rearing sheep. Twenty-five years after the discovery of iron ore and the birth of the Furness Railway, some 40,000 people were living and working in what was then called ‘the Chicago of England’. That amazing growth was driven by the iron and steam of the Furness Line."
But earlier this week he wrote in his weekly newspaper column that Barrow now had "no chance in the competition" and claimed that Labour-run Barrow Council, "after initially being supportive, refused to submit the bid that we wrote".
He added: "To be told that the Labour leader of the Council said she would "back any bid other than Barrow's" staggers me. Late last year, when the Railways Minister visited Barrow Railway Station he said that we had a "compelling case." I still passionately believe that he was right. Of course, this was a competition and there will be dozens of towns vying for the opportunity.
"There is only one guarantee - if you don’t enter, you don’t stand a chance. And we have no chance in the competition now. This is a serious failure by the Labour leadership at the Council - what is a local Council for if not to promote the community it represents?
Carlisle
Carlisle City Council leaders points to its strategic transport importance, its railway heritage and the locations in the city with potential for the HQ.
Local councillor James Bainbridge said in a meeting this month: “Over the 170 years of the rail which predates Carlisle City Council, predates Cumbria County Council, predates even councillors in this building, it’s been an up and down history. We’ve had good times, we’ve had bad times, we’ve had to be at war, we’ve had to deal with famine – but the railway has always matched Carlisle’s aspirations.”
In a time of economic development in Carlisle, a £20m regeneration of the railway station is just one of the plans in store.
Local Conservative MP John Stevenson said: "Carlisle is not only a city with a proud and distinguished railway history - it is one with a bright and important railway future.
Carnforth:
The importance of the Lancashire market town five miles North of Lancaster came from its position at the crossroads of the north-south mainline and the east-west lines linking the Furness peninsula with West Yorkshire and beyond. It became not only a hub for the railways, but also for the Post Office and the site of an iron and steel works.
This indelible link with the railways was immortalised in David Lean’s 1956 film Brief Encounter, with one of the most romantic and poignant love scenes in cinema history shot at Carnforth.
Following a groundswell of support from local people, organisations, and a petition from Lancaster Civic Vision, the city council has now agreed to work up an expression of interest for Carnforth.In the Commons both local MPs, Tory David Morris and Labour's Cat Smith, threw their weight behind the bid.
Councillor Caroline Jackson, leader of Lancaster City Council, said: “Carnforth fits perfectly into the criteria for this competition and would provide an outstanding location for the headquarters, due to its rail heritage, connectivity and opportunities for levelling up."
Crewe
The record producer and railway enthusiast Pete Waterman are among those supporting Crewe's bid to become the headquarters of Great British Railways.
Crewe Railway Station opened in 1837 and is described as one of the most historically significant railway stations in the world. Supporters say the headquarters would also benefit many surrounding areas due to Crewe’s strong transport connections to the rest of the country.
Sam Corcoran, leader of Cheshire East Council, in agreement with all Cheshire East political group leaders, said: “This is a rail town through and through, at the heart of the rail network and with rail at the heart of the town.
“We’re proud of our rail heritage and the role the town has played in the growth of the railways but that’s not the only reason why Crewe is the right place for this opportunity – far from it.
“Crewe is one of the most connected interchanges in the country, connecting the nation and serving as a gateway for the North. This means that the possibilities this headquarters brings can flow throughout the country.
“GBR in Crewe has to be for Crewe – and the people of Crewe. We believe bringing it here opens up a range of opportunities that will benefit our residents. Our strong rail industry means we have a skilled workforce that is right for GBR in return."
Doncaster:
Given Doncaster’s historic links with the railways dating back to the 1850s and, as the birthplace of the Mallard and Flying Scotsman, its central position on the East Coast Main Line and its air, rail and road links, the town considers that it is ideally placed to host the headquarters of GBR, council bosses have said.
South Yorkshire business leaders have backed Doncaster's bid to be the home of a new national railway body and Doncaster chamber's Dan Fell said the county backing showed there was a "community of train families".
And the bid even has the support of the Hull and Humber Chamber of Commerce despite Hull submitting its own bid.
Dr Ian Kelly, chief executive of Hull and Humber Chamber of Commerce, said: “Doncaster becoming the home of the Great British Rail headquarters is an important step for the whole region’s economic growth and for the government’s levelling up commitments. We welcome this bid and anticipate it creating opportunities for businesses and communities in the Hull and Humber area.”
Hull:
No information about the Hull bid has been put into the public domain. Hull City Council has been approached for comment.
Liverpool City Region:
Liverpool City Region Combined Authority and St Helens are pushing to have the headquarters at Parkside in Newton-le-Willows, described as the world's 'first railway town'.
Newton-le-Willows is home to the oldest recognisably modern railway station in the world- with Earlestown station opened in 1830. The station sat on the Liverpool to Manchester line which was also opened in 1830.
“While many places claim to be the home of the railway, there can be no denying our borough really does hold that title,” said St Helens council leader David Baines.
“It was the birthplace of Stephenson’s Rocket, saw the very first modern passenger railway with the opening of the Liverpool Manchester Railway in 1830 and the first railway viaduct in the world at Sankey Valley,” Baines continued.
“But it’s not just our history that makes St Helens a first-class choice. Parkside is poised to become one of the most strategically important employment sites in the North West and lies at the heart of the City Region’s freeport plans, with the site forming the largest freeport tax site.”
The Parkside site was chosen by St Helens based on its connectivity – it is located on the M6 Growth Corridor and will have a Strategic Rail Freight Interchange.
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Preston:
Preston Railway Station is the main railway hub in Lancashire, with several lines providing direct connections across Lancashire from Blackpool to Colne and Carnforth to Chorley, as well as to key destinations including London, Manchester, Edinburgh, Glasgow and the Midlands.
It has been put forward by Tory-run Lancashire County Council, to the annoyance of Morecambe and Lunesdale MP David Morris, who wanted the Council to bid on behalf of Carnforth.
County Councillor Aidy Riggott, the cabinet member for economic development and growth at Lancashire County Council, said: “If we’re successful, the Great British Railways offices would bring significant numbers of jobs and economic growth as staff relocate, with potential wider opportunities and benefits across Lancashire.
“Our bid builds on the work we’re doing with Preston City Council and the University of Central Lancashire to create a regeneration framework for the Station Quarter, which is a key area for development, as well as a transport gateway.”
Wakefield:
The West Yorkshire city has two railway stations - Westgate and Kirkgate - both of which were built in the 19th century.
Its place on the East Coast Main Line and its two-hour journey from London are factors which may be considered to count in the city's favour.
Darren Byford of Labour-run Wakefield council said the city's bid had been backed by West Yorkshire's mayor and the region's leaders.
York:
The historic city's bid includes an extensive list of reasons why York would make the best home for the GBR HQ.
Among them is its "unrivalled" railway heritage. The city's bid says: "York is the most important location outside of London for the running of the railways - we're the place that not only built the trains and carriages, but also the rail networks, business models, management expertise and innovation, we're home to the National Railway Museum, and to 100 rail companies and 5,500 rail jobs focussed on the operation and development of the network, with a significant private sector cluster providing services key to GBR’s mission".
It adds that the huge York Central site "presents a unique opportunity to create Britain’s biggest rail cluster - it's the largest city centre brownfield site in England and already has Enterprise Zone Status and outline planning permission for 2,500 homes and 1million sq. ft. of Grade A offices - Network Rail are already a key landowner in the site, which also includes the £60m expansion of the National Railway Museum."
And it says: "York’s rail workforce is young, skilled and diverse - the breadth of York’s skills base, across rolling stock, engineering, planning and the digital future, creates an incredibly strong sector, which can both contribute towards and benefit GBR."
Other contenders:
Other contenders outside the North are Birmingham, Bishops Stortford, Camborne, Coventry, Derby, Didcot, Dundee, Eastleigh, Edinburgh ,Fife, Gloucester, Grantham, Milton Keynes, Motherwell, Northampton, Nuneaton, Perth, Peterborough, Southampton, Swindon, Tamworth, Tonbridge, Wellingborough, West of England combined authority (including Bristol and Bath) and Worcester.
