Councillor Sean Fielding, leader of Oldham Council Major plans to overhaul the rail network in the North which could see train services reduced in parts of Greater Manchester are ‘deeply regressive’, leaders say. The government is consulting on changes to pre-Covid timetables aimed at easing congestion in and around Manchester, spacing services more evenly, and reducing delays from May 2022. A task force has been working towards improving services on the network since the disastrous introduction of new timetables in May 2018 caused widespread disruption. Three proposals tabled by the Department for Transport (DfT) will affect different train lines and which routes run directly to Oxford Road, Piccadilly, and Manchester Airport.