British operator Northern Trains has reported its best year for passenger demand since the pandemic, with nearly 100 million journeys made across its network in 2025.
A total of 98.6 million journeys were made during the calendar year, representing a 10% increase on 2024 and an additional 8.8 million journeys overall.
These figures highlight the continued growth of rail travel in northern England as more people return to the train for work, leisure, and daily travel.
Commuting was a key driver of growth, with annual season ticket journeys increasing by 10% compared to the previous year. This equates to almost one million additional commuter journeys, reflecting growing confidence in the train as a reliable mode of transport for getting to work.
British operator Northern Trains says the strongest growth was on routes to major urban centers. Journeys to Manchester increased by 12% compared to the previous year, and Liverpool saw a 19% increase. Leeds saw a 7% increase, and Newcastle had the largest increase, with 27% more journeys compared to December 2024.
December 2025 was a particularly strong month, with over eight million journeys, up 12% on December 2024 and the highest total for a December since before the pandemic.
Demand to Newcastle was also boosted by the Northumberland Line (in northeast England), which opened in mid-December 2024. Over the course of the year, more than 890,000 journeys were made on this line, and in December 2025 alone, the route contributed 37,000 additional journeys to the city.
“It is encouraging to see significant increases in demand from commuters and on routes to our major urban centers, alongside the success of new routes such as the Northumberland Line. This shows us that people want frequent, affordable, and reliable rail transport,” said Alex Hornby, Commercial and Customer Director at Northern Trains.
Northern is the UK’s second-largest rail operator, with 2,650 daily services to over 500 stations in northern England.
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