Manchester United fans will also face engineering works on the trains for their trip to Arsenal in April.
Network Rail have confirmed that, while it will not be as disruptive as FA Cup semi-final weekend, there will be a two track railway rather than the usual four meaning fewer trains and busier services between the North West and London for the lunchtime kick-off on April 23. Burnley fans will also face a nightmare journey to West Ham on April 17 because of engineering works as there will be no direct trains for the FA Cup semi final between Liverpool and Manchester City at Wembley.
It highlights the fact that it is not just down to the Football Association but leading figures in football want the issue to spark a wider conversation with the Premier League, TV companies and the FA about travel for fans in football. Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham has slammed the FA and renewed his calls for the semi-final to be switched from Wembley to the North West.
But the FA will not switch the game because of their Wembley contract, insisting that ticket sales do help the grassroots game and discussions are also ongoing about finding alternative ways to travel. The fixture list also means there is no scope for moving the FA Cup semi-final because of Premier League and Champions League games. United are also at home on April 16 meaning the game could not be switched to Old Trafford.
It is understood that only an estimated 2,250 Liverpool fans travelled by trains to last month’s Carabao Cup final and the FA believe the majority come by road and organised coach trips. A rail industry source has insisted that Network Rail first alerted the FA about the engineering works in November 2019 via their forward planner and wrote to them last September to suggest changing the dates to avoid a clash.
Dave Penney, Network Rail passenger director for the North West and Central region, said: “Because we plan our railway upgrades up to two years in advance, regrettably it’s impossible to know which teams will make it to Wembley in the FA Cup or factor that in to our annual bank holiday railway improvements. Now we know Liverpool and Manchester City are through to the semi-final, we are making fans aware of our work before match tickets go on sale to give people as much time as possible to plan their journey.
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“Our message is if you choose to travel by rail the best times to do so are before and after the Easter Bank Holiday on Thursday 14 and Tuesday 19 April.”
An FA Spokesperson: “The FA will be liaising closely with both Liverpool FC and Manchester City FC on all match arrangements, including supporters travel for the upcoming Emirates FA Cup Semi Final fixture at Wembley Stadium, with further details to be announced in due course. We are also continuing to work with both Network Rail and National Express to find a solution so that supporters of both teams are able to travel to and from the fixture with as minimal disruption as possible.”
