It’s a vibrant north-western city packed with culture, thriving business and world-renowned sport.

So why is it that Liverpool’s transport link to London – just one service an hour – lags behind its fellow northern cities, including Manchester, which has three?

The bidding process is currently underway for the West Coast Partnership – which will be responsible for services on the west coast and eventually High Speed 2 – from next year.

And there’s good news – the Department for Transport’s latest specification for HS2 – which is set to see a line built from the capital to Birmingham and the north – proposes two trains per hour between Liverpool and London from 2026.

They will serve Runcorn and Liverpool Lime Street, with services also expected to stop at Crewe.

According to a document to be discussed by the Liverpool Combined Authority’s transport committee later this week, support will be sought from the Metro Mayor for a letter to be sent to the government’s Secretary of State for Transport.

The letter will “highlight the need for an improved service between Liverpool and London as soon as possible” – even before HS2 services begin in 2026.

Here’s why it’s vital that increase in services happens:

1. Similar northern cities have more London links than Liverpool

Manchester has three direct trains per hour to the capital, while Newcastle and Leeds both have two. Birmingham has up to six when you include both of its main stations, while Stoke-on-Trent has three, so why not more for Liverpool?

2. The huge growth of the city’s economy

According to research by City Metric, between 1998 and 2016, Liverpool’s economy grew by a factor of 2.1 – that’s more than all of the UK’s cities bar London, Edinburgh and Cardiff.

It’s one of the UK economy’s major centres, so the ability to travel to the capital quickly and in comfort would be a huge boost.

The document added that the ability to reach London in just over two hours has been “vital” in helping the region grow economically, so a further boost to this facility would help it grow even more.

3. A city with sporting and cultural prowess

With Liverpool FC having made the final of last season’s Champions League, Everton aiming for a good season with their new manager and Tranmere back in the league, Merseyside’s football clubs are arguably at their most successful levels in recent years.

With great sporting prowess comes an intensified need for transport, with increased interest in the city, and getting fans from place to place.

That’s as well as the city’s massive cultural reputation, with 2018 marking a milestone year of events ten years on from the award of the European Capital of Culture – not to mention its most famous export of all — The Beatles.

It’s also recently been named the third best city to visit in the UK by Tripadvisor, as well as one of the top holiday destinations in the world for 2018.

4. A shiny new station – so why not a service to match?

A £140m redevelopment of Lime Street saw the station “get its grandeur back”.

So with an entire new platform being added, and capacity being increased by up to three trains an hour, why shouldn’t one of those be a service to London?

5. Trains between Liverpool and London are packed

If you’ve ever caught a train between Lime Street and Euston, you’ll probably be familiar with the queues to board, before you struggle to even find a seat.

Surely another service per hour would alleviate that strain, resulting in a more comfortable, less stressful trip down to London.

6. More trains could mean lower prices

An anytime peak return from Lime Street to London booked on the same day currently sets you back an eye-watering £318, far more expensive than the cost of flights to countries as far afield as Spain, Bulgaria, Hungary and Romania.

More available seats could mean lower prices for those commuting and travelling between London and Merseyside.

7. Liverpool cannot be left behind in huge UK rail development

The combined authority sees the West Coast Partnership as a chance to “further enhance” the city’s rail links to London and other destinations along the West Coast main line.

It says: “With HS2 on the horizon, the economic geography of the UK is about to undergo a radical change, which Liverpool City Region needs to be at the forefront of to ensure continued growth and prosperity.”

8. More connectivity for ‘intermediate’ locations

The move would also mean more connectivity and better prospects for people travelling from locations on the Liverpool-London line such as Crewe, Stafford and Milton Keynes.

Speaking on Monday, Cllr James Noakes, Liverpool’s cabinet member for transport said: “Liverpool wants and deserves better connections to London on our railway. It’s good for business and it’s good for visitors trying to reach our city. In comparison with other major cities around the country we have significantly less per hour to London, and to the other cities East/West. But the issue shouldn’t be oversimplified to how many trains per hour we have.

“Government spend over £4,000 on transport infrastructure per capita in London and only £1,600 in the North, which is a massive difference, alongside their underinvestment in the roads, which we are having to make up with our own money. It means that our economy isn’t in the best shape to compete, which we have seen with Channel 4’s decision to look elsewhere. To put it simply, we cannot afford to be left out of plans for more trains, better roads and faster railways.”