[dunks]

This is Northerns new hourly service which starts on 14th December. It will certainly be a new experience as services last ran this way in May 1989. Once again Victoria will be directly accessible to Chorley, Preston & Blackpool and certainly represents something of a turn-around in Victoria's fortunes aswell as the obvious connectional opportunities.

Maybe its also exposes the Oxford Road corridors biggest flaw - congestion and capacity constraints. Mind you, even with the Windsor Link in place both 4-track approaches from East & West still favour Victoria in terms of capacity (remember its only 2-track from Ordsall lane to Deansgate)and the expansion of Salford Central from 2 to 4 platforms next year will only enhance this further.