Road network
Stoke-on-Trent is linked to the nearby M6 motorway at junctions 15 and 16 by the A500. Locally the A500 is known to as the D road as 500 in Roman Numerals is D, the A500 from above also resembles a D. The A50 cuts through the city, providing an important link to the M1 near Nottingham.
Rail
Stoke-on-Trent railway station is a mainline station on the Stafford to Manchester Line, which is a branch of the West Coast Main Line and has an inter-city train service, currently with trains to London (about 90 minutes by train) and also to Manchester (40 minutes) every half-hour on weekdays. There are regular through trains to Stafford, Wolverhampton, Birmingham, Birmingham International Airport, Coventry, Oxford, Reading and Bournemouth. Regional train services operate on the Crewe to Derby Line. Stoke-on-Trent railway station is managed by Virgin Trains and it has a first-class lounge and wi-fi service. There is are two station car parks (one small, one large), and a covered taxi rank. Virgin Pendolino train 390029 is named after Stoke-on-Trent.
Buses & coaches
Local public transport is almost exclusively by bus. Bus services are mainly operated by Potteries Motor Traction, now owned by First Group under the name First PMT. There are also several smaller companies operating bus services in the city. There are central bus stations in Hanley city centre and Longton town centre. National Express operate long distance coach services from Hanley bus station.
Canals
The city is served by the Trent & Mersey Canal, which sees traffic of some 10,000 boats a year. Additionally, the Caldon Canal branches off from the Trent and Mersey at Etruria, within the city boundaries, going to Froghall, Staffordshire with one branch going to Leek. Recently numerous improvements to the canal system have been made.
Cycling
There are 100-miles of new National Cycle Network off-road bicycle paths through the city, connecting the city to the national long-distance paths, completed in 2005.
