Northern Rail records more than 8 million journeys in 4-week period

Rail operator, Northern, has seen more than 8 million journeys made on its trains across the North of England in the period from 14 September and 11 October 2025.

Northern, which operates local services and stations across Stockport, recorded an 8.3% increase in journeys made compared to the same period last year, with 8.1 million journeys across its network, which stretches from Staffordshire to the Scottish Border. The four week period was also the busiest for the rail operator since Februrary 2020, prior to the Covid-19 pandemic.

With the period in September and October also including significant disruption across the region from Storm Amy, the setting of a new post-pandemic record for travel reflects a continued confidence in rail travel across the North. Demand was also boosted by a recent Flash Sale, which saw customers snap up a record 150,000 advance tickets, priced from just £2.

While celebrating the milestone, Northern remains focused on improving its overall performance. The operator is working to an ambition of no more than 2% of services are cancelled and that 90% arrive within three minutes of schedule.

Alex Hornby, commercial and customer director for Northern, said:

“This record performance is a testament to the growing strength of our network and the trust our customers place in us.

“We’re seeing more people than ever choosing Northern for work, leisure and everything in between – and initiatives like the Flash Sale are helping make rail travel more accessible and affordable.

“I’d like to thank our customers for trusting Northern – we know there is more work to be done on performance, and we’re working hard to get things right.”

Northern is the second largest train operator in the UK, running 2,650 services a day to over 500 stations across the North of England.