Who are Merseyrail?
Merseyrail is a fairly self-contained network of railways focused around the city of Liverpool. They link Merseyside and the Wirral to the city itself and provide connections to other rail lines to the rest of the country. They serve 68 stations (and manage 66 of them) and their fleet of trains is currently being renewed. When all of the new trains have been delivered, they’ll have 53 of them.
Merseyrail is a bit like a Metro-style service. It doesn’t offer any savings for booking in advance, and there’s usually just a single and a return fare.
If you’re travelling from further afield, be aware that Merseyrail doesn’t accept eTickets. This means that you’ll need to collect your tickets from the station if you’re travelling one on of their trains.
We’ve written a dedicated page about finding cheap train tickets to Liverpool if you’re coming from elsewhere in the country.
On board services
You’ll find overhead luggage racks on all Merseyrail trains.
New Merseyrail trains have free WiFi available. They’re being introduced in the coming year.
You can bring non-folding bikes onto trains on the Merseyrail network without any time restrictions. There are two spaces per train and they’re available on a first-come, first-served basis. There’s more information in our dedicated guide to travelling with bikes.
Up to two dogs, cats or other small domestic animals can travel free.
Most Merseyrail stations have booking office staff who’ll be able to provide assistance on a “turn up and go” basis. The exceptions are Overpool, Little Sutton, Bache and Capenhurst which are unstaffed. Ellesmere Port is also unstaffed after 14:00 each day. At these stations, you’ll need to use the Help Point. You can find out more about Passenger Assist on our dedicated page.