Train service Marsden/Slawit to Manchester or Leeds

[Kitty1996]

DH and I have taken early retirement and would love to move to the Marsden/ Slawit area -we are back this week for our second visit .

We love walking the moors but also the culture and city life in Leeds and Manchester which is on the doorstep .We've read real horror stories about train disruptions and LONG delays for poor commuters. How bad are the trains if you aren't travelling during rush hour for work please?

There've been lots of strikes by Northern Rail recently but outside of this I have always found the service to be good so I wouldn't let it put you off. The industrial action won't last forever.

Hello kitty I think I remember your previous post
There can be delays and over crowding but unless you are commuting I don’t think it’s a major problem.

We use Greenfield for similar and no particular problems (next station down from Marsden). Both Northern and Transpennine run services on those lines so there can be options even if strikes etc.

If it's fit leisure and you aren't relying on them for commuting it's pretty good. We live in Saddleworth but I'll get the train from Marsden if I'm going to hudds or Leeds. I tend to rely on the tram to get into Manchester although as they're far more frequent

If you avoid commuter rush hour, you should be fine. It's no worse than anywhere else IMO.

And I'd pick Slaithwaite over Marsden, any day. Slaithwaite is becoming very trendy and has some great little shops...

Slawit (and possibly Marsden) are served by Transpennine now so they’re not particularly affected by the Northern Strikes.

The reliability of trains is questionable since last May, although a bit better since the changes in December. If you’re retiring and not relying on it to get to work, then you should be ok. There’s also plenty of buses into Huddersfield if you need them and you’re only 10 minutes away from the M62 if you choose to drive.

I love this part of the world; the community is great and there’s a lot of things happening in the area. Visit Om is Where the Heart is in Slawit for lunch, if you’ve not been already.

PM me if you want to chat more. I’m always encouraging everyone to move here!

Thanks to everyone for their advice and updates on the train/transport situation. Since our last visit in Sept the national press had said the rail service was one of worst in country so we wanted to check out the real state of play with locals . Loving the area even more this time since we are here for longer and have had some great walks across the moors and met up with Jane a local estate agent in Slawit to pick her brains after she came highly recommended by mumsnet.

I live in the area and regretfully had to give up relying on the train to get to work in the summer. For leisure, it should be fine but not if you need to be in Huddersfield for a certain time.

Sorry just seen you're retired so shouldn't be a problem for you. And I will add that living in such a great place makes up for the carry on with the trains!