Merseyrail is a commuter rail network which serves Merseyside and adjacent areas of Cheshire and Lancashire in the North West of England.

Merseyrail was established in 1977, when existing railway lines were connected by constructing new tunnels under Liverpool city centre and Birkenhead.

Seven of the Class 777 trains can operate using batteries, which has allowed the Northern line to extend beyond the electrified track at Kirkby to a new terminus at Headbolt Lane.

The self-contained network is operated by Merseyrail Electrics 2002, a 50:50 joint venture between Serco and Transport UK Group.

As a self-contained system serving a single City Region, the Northern and Wirral lines are exempt from the national rail franchising structure, which is instead the responsibility of local government.

The Northern line is shown in blue on the Merseyrail[11] and Merseytravel[12] maps and denoted by the above wordmark on underground stations.

The Wirral line is shown in green on the Merseyrail[11] and Merseytravel[12] maps and denoted by the above wordmark on underground stations.

These combine to give a service at least every five minutes from Birkenhead Hamilton Square and around the loop under Liverpool's city centre.

[13] The modern Merseyrail network was developed in the 1970s from lines that were previously owned by several different railway companies.

The Beeching axe during the early 1960s closed key routes in and around Liverpool, with the council proposing an alternate strategy and advocating the preservation of suburban services integrated into a new regional electrified rapid-transit network.

[22] Typical weekday off-peak service on the Merseyrail-run Northern and Wirral lines, as of December 2024[update], is as follows: On 28 January 2020, rolling-stock manufacturer Stadler Rail provided the first of a new fleet of 53 new train sets, designated Class 777, built at its factory in Bussnang, Switzerland.

The new trains have an articulated four-car design, compared to the previous three-car units, with a significantly increased overall capacity and faster acceleration and deceleration, which gives reduced journey times.

[25] As of April 2021[update], all trains are only equipped for 750 V DC third rail operation, along with a smaller battery for depot shunting.

[26] The National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers opposed driver-only operation on the new fleet, which they said would put passenger safety and security at risk.

[28] Merseytravel has an option for a further 60 Class 777 units as part of the contract, which if exercised would see a total of 113 trains built if services are extended to new destinations such as Helsby, Skelmersdale or Wrexham.

[35] The technology opens up the possibility of the trains serving routes to destinations such as Wrexham, Preston, Wigan and Warrington.

[42][43] The electric fleet is maintained and stabled at Stadler's maintenance depot and United Kingdom headquarters at Kirkdale and Birkenhead North TMD.

Although franchises are awarded and administered on a national level (initially through various independent bodies, and later the Department of Transport directly), under the original privatisation legislation of 1993, passenger transport executives (PTEs) were co-signatories of franchise agreements covering their areas – this role being later modified by the Railways Act 2005.

[49] The first train operating company awarded the Mersey Rail Electrics franchise contract was MTL.

The City line was also privatised under the 1993 Act, but as part of a different, much larger North West Regional Railways (NWRR) franchise.

[50] When the Mersey Rail Electrics franchise was due for renewal, coming into force on 20 July 2003, Merseytravel contracted the operation of the two lines with a concession extending for up to 25 years.

The first successful bidder was Merseyrail Electrics (2002) Ltd, a joint venture between Serco and NedRailways (renamed Abellio in 2009).

The first train operating company awarded this franchise contract was Northern Rail, also owned by a Serco-NedRail (Abellio) joint venture.

Due to the isolation of the Northern and Wirral lines, Merseyrail Electrics (2002) Ltd are keen to adopt vertical integration – taking responsibility for maintenance of the track from Network Rail.

[53] In 2023, Merseyrail was audited by the UK Government Office of Road & Rail; it found poor performance with 26.2% of trains being delayed by 4 or more minutes and a cancellation rate of 2.2%, an increase of 1.1% on the previous year.

[54] Merseyrail employs a team of officers who enforce railway by-laws relating to placing feet on seats, travelling without tickets, and other kinds of anti-social behaviour.

[58] On 26 October 2005, a Merseyrail Class 508 train de-railed in a tunnel on the approach to Liverpool Central underground station.

[61] On 22 October 2011, an intoxicated teenage girl died after falling between the train and platform at James Street station.

The train guard, Christopher McGee, was subsequently convicted of her manslaughter by gross negligence and was jailed for five years.