I’d love to see TfW doing more direct services from Manchester (Victoria, not Piccadilly) to Holyhead for the SailRail services to Dublin, now that the Irish government, as part of EU climate change rules, is proposing to restrict or ban shorthaul flights between Ireland and the U.K. and given the shelving (yet again) of the high-speed rail tunnel between Holyhead and Dublin, even as Dublin Port has expanded to take cruise ships - I’ve lived in Manchester 20 years but I have extended family in Rural Republic of Ireland, using SailRail to get home to Ireland on visits - the biggest problems for me is when connecting from Manchester Metrolink trams at Piccadilly, they use Platforms 13 & 14 (miles away, with a heavy suitcase, after getting tickets/information) and they don’t even call at Deansgate/Castlefield which is easier for Metrolink, then they change trains at either Chester, Crewe or Lladnuo and these have very short connection times into packed trains (Chester by far is the worst), so I just get a Northern from Victoria to Chester and an Avanti from Chester to Holyhead instead now when going SailRail to make the ferry check in times on the Irish Ferries Ulysses to Dublin - I avoid travelling on the 20.55 Irish Ferries Ulysses sailing from Dublin overnight now, as one is stuck in Holyhead for 4 hours from 00.20 - 04.25 for the earliest train from Holyhead to Chester
