There's really positive news to share today - namely that following the meeting Ben Houchen - Tees Valley Mayor and I had with TransPennine Express earlier this month, Transport for the North have approved a franchise change that will see direct trains run to and from Saltburn-by-the-Sea and Manchester from December 2019.
There is still final agreement to be reached with TransPennine themselves to operate the service, but this is a huge stride in the right direction. Ben deserves great credit for persuading his fellow northern leaders this should be a priority. I know from my conversations with the great volunteers at Saltburn Line User Group and local people there is an enormous appetite to see this happen!