MERSEYRAIL DREAMS | New Station New Trains the Scouse Accent and a Monorail

++++ ERROR MESSAGE ++++ I have made an important factual error in the video. I stated that Merseyrail was never privatised. This is not correct. There is a franchise arrangement in operation. Merseyrail was sold but I I understand the Liverpool City Region aspires to regain ownership of the network at the end of the current franchise. Full details here. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Merseyrail Thanks to @andrewnelson4057 for pointing out the error. Unfortunately I can't correct within the video itself.
DESCRIPTION
In this update of AidanEyewitness, we go on a whistle-stop tour of the Liverpool region using the Mersey rail network.
In October 2023, a new station opened, for now, the newest in the country, Headbolt Lane, one station beyond Kirkby in the north east of Liverpool.
Our journey starts across the Mersey at Woodside and we rediscover the lost Birkenhead Woodside station. Then we travel to Liverpool South Parkway and commemorate another notable piece of railway news from this week: the axing - or cancellation - by Rishi Sunak - Conservative Prime Minister - of the promised high-speed rail extension from Birmingham to Manchester.
Then we stop off at Liverpool Central to look at the new state-of-the-art Swiss-made trains that went into service on the Merseyrail network in January 2023, a few years behind schedule.
After that, we get on the train to Kirby and Headbolt Lane, Merseyrail's proud brand new station.
On the train. I briefly meet the famous London-based KZbinr Geoff Marshall and his northern associate Karl. No time for selfies or interviews, unfortunately.
After admiring Liverpool's "lovely brand-new station", we return to Liverpool Central and listen to station announcements in the wonderful Scouse accent.
We take a look back in time to the old mainline Central Station which was sadly closed in 1972.
Then we take a trip into the past at the Liverpool Museum and admire what was once Liverpool's biggest tourist attraction, the Liverpool Overhead Railway. Then I outline my dream of a Liverpool monorail running along the path of the so-called "Dockers Umbrella" which was dismantled around 1956.
Finally, via James Street Station, part of it a living museum, we head over to a very notable station on the Wirral line before returning to the centre.
I really enjoyed the tour, but I felt that I was just scratching the surface of the rich history and heritage of Liverpool and the Liverpool Rity Region, a place with a dynamic past, present and future.

[@AidanEyewitness]

++++ ERROR MESSAGE ++++ There is an important factual error in the video. I stated that "Merseyrail never fell victim to Tory privatisation". This is not correct. There is a franchise arrangement in operation. Merseyrail was sold but I understand the Liverpool City Region aspires to regain ownership of the network at the end of the current franchise. Full details here.

[@paulmason6474]

Everything is too expensive unless London needs/ wants it. Great informative video well done

[@affectionatepunch]

Liverpool Central is the busiest underground station outside London its busier than Lime street with over 40000 passengers a day

[@reubenjelley3583]

Monorail’s are a bit of a gadgetbahn. Much easier to maintain a network with the same gauges/ cross compatibility/ uniform parts etc. Say you build the tracks all mono, it’s much harder in the future to use the overhead section as a core for extensions/ diversions/ realignments etc

[@williamwatson228]

The old 'disused 'Platform 2 at James Street Station is actually used on occasion. if there's a problem on the loop line under the city trains can terminate here and it's also used as a link to move trains from the deeper Wirral Line to the Northern Line and vice versa. I got off a train there not so long ago.

[@AustinKelly94]

From Dublin, first visit to Liverpool was last week. Very impressed with the lovely city and particularly the frequent Merseyrail. Thanks for the video

[@bigdunc228]

Brilliant my friend. BRUNSWICK TO BRAMLEY MOORE MUST HAPPEN.

[@fromthefountofyouth]

Reading the Liverpool City Region Rail Strategy, while there aren't plans to recreate the Overhead Railway, there are certainly plans to enlarge Central, reactivate the Edge Hill Spur and Wapping Tunnel towards the east of the city and onward. There are even plans for an underground station in the Knowledge Quarter. I found it an interesting read.

[@Dooguk]

What a great video. I like your monorail idea

[@jamesriley9472]

brilliant.

[@ianhalsall-fox]

I love the monorail idea. Seattle has a fine example of one linking downtown to the famous Space Needle. It would be great to link the city centre stations to the new Everton ground.

[@theenaart]

amazing video! I need to visit Liverpool again :)

[@Merseywail]

Very good video, I really like that monorail overhead railway idea. Also thanks for the channel mention. I really need to do a follow up to building the Merseyrail underground video. There were much bigger plans that never came to fruition sadly.

[@uingaeoc3905]

The Overhead railway was an eyesore and was underused once the Southern Docks became redundant with the growth of containerisation and the new facilities at Seaforth.

[@PostcardAndAPint]

Loved this. I used to travel from Rockferry to Lime Street to college every day on Merseyrail. I didn’t know that about Hamilton Square. Love the look of the new trains. We’ve never been in that museum! Thanks for the heads up. Cheers 🍻

[@tonysebo9010]

Nice one Aidan. Not too sure about a monorail, but another elevated light railway along that route would wonderfully serve new high density mixed use distracts along the river and docklands!

[@martyn6792]

There was a video I found of the Liverpool overhead railway, fascinating watching

[@orglancs]

I certainly haven't forgotten the trains at Woodside. You used to be able to travel from London, Paddington to Woodside, all the way on one train! Not as fast as Euston to Lime Street, but a wonderful journey. If it closed in 1972, the Woodside closure must have been much later than the big swathe of Beeching closures. The loss of the Overhead makes me wince whenever someone or something reminds me of it. It was such a huge experience to travel the whole length of it and see how the country's economy worked. I remember seeing the Empress of Canada heeled over on her side after the huge fire, which burnt for days. I wonder if there is some newsreel film of it somewhere in the archives. That would be something to show, wouldn't it?

[@iany2448]

Nice to see a video showing Merseyrail services. Still remembered the time my two year old had that distinct accent.

[@garyrigby21]

So much more needs to be done in Liverpool i don't know where to start i can never get an answer from Steve Rotheram. They should have named the county Greater Liverpool in 1974 expanded the Airport and left Manchester in Lancashire! Liverpool would be booming now maybe even the 2nd largest city in the UK