Andy Burnham says 'crumbling' Snake and Woodhead pass are 'priorities'

Andy Burnham, who travelled over the Snake Pass for the event in Sheffield, said the problem “needs to be addressed”.

Andy Burnham has described the current transport links between Sheffield and Manchester as “ridiculous” while promising action on inter-city travel.

Since 2021, there have been no trains running between Sheffield and Manchester Airport, while the only road routes between are the Snake and Woodhead Pass which continue to face infrastructure issues.

Mr Burnham, who travelled over the Snake Pass for the event in Sheffield, said the problem “needs to be addressed”.

“I came from home in the northwest this morning, so you don't need to persuade me. We feel it as much as you do on your side,” he said.

“Manchester and Sheffield have a lot of complimentary industry, there's lots of ties between the two cities and it's ridiculous actually that we have a couple of winding roads and a creaky rail service. It's got to be better than that.”

He added: “It cannot be right that the Woodhead Pass, the Snake Pass, are managed as just local roads that are crumbling and not available for large parts of the year.”

The Woodhead Pass reopened on Friday morning, after it was closed due to Peak District wildfires.