A £600m boost to the northern rail network has been announced alongside the establishment of an organisation to accelerate transport investment in the region.

The Department for Transport (DfT) said the vast majority of the money will go towards kick-starting the Transpennine Upgrade to electrify most of the line between Manchester and Leeds.

It will also allow faster trains to overtake slower ones by doubling the number of tracks from two to four on the most congested sections around Huddersfield and Leeds.

There are further plans for full electrification, digital signalling, more areas with four tracks and improved freight capacity.

Those measures would allow all-electric services to operate between Liverpool, Manchester, Leeds, York and Newcastle.

The DfT claimed the creation of the body will give northern leaders a “direct line to ministers” to speed up projects.

Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham welcomed the announcements.