| Liverpool to Wigan Line | |
|---|---|
| Overview | |
| System | National Rail |
| Status | Operational |
| Locale | Liverpool Merseyside Greater Manchester North West England |
| Operation | |
| Owner | Network Rail |
| Technical | |
| Track gauge | Standard gauge 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) |
The Liverpool to Wigan Line is a railway line in the north-west of England, running between Liverpool Lime Street and Wigan North Western via St Helens Central.
Contents |
The route follows part of the Northern section of the Liverpool to Manchester line up to Huyton Junction; where it deviates, routing via Prescot and St Helens Central to Ince Moss and St Helens Line Junctions. Here, the line joins the West Coast Main Line near Springs Branch and runs onto Wigan North Western.
The route sees service from three passenger trains per hour (tph) in both directions between Liverpool and Wigan, usually operated by Northern Rail Class 142, Class 150, or Class 156 DMUs. The 3tph frequency includes two local stopping services and one longer distance express. The longer distance service usually continues to Blackpool North and operates a limited stop service of Huyton, St Helens Central and Wigan in the Liverpool to Wigan leg of its journey. For local passenger transport, the route is branded as a significant section of one of Merseytravel's City Line routes.
In December 2009, the then Transport Secretary Lord Adonis, announced that the line between Huyton and St Helens Line Junctions will also be electrified along with the previously committed Edge Hill to Huyton Junction infill on the Liverpool to Manchester line, as part of a £200 million rail electrification scheme. Despite speculation that the electrification project would be shelved under the following coalition government's spending cuts [1]; in October 2010, the coalition chancellor George Osborne, confirmed the project would still go ahead [2].
This work, in conjunction with the previously-announced Liverpool to Manchester line electrification would electrify the entire Liverpool to Wigan route. Additionally, considering currently-operated services; in conjunction with other infill electrification projects announced, this will allow electric trains to operate from Liverpool to St Helens, Wigan, Preston and Blackpool [3].
Merseytravel (One of the two PTEs on the route) had previously stated their aspirations for the St Helens infill electrification; considering it a necessary addition to the (then-proposed) Liverpool to Manchester electrification, given the interworking of passenger services between the Chat Moss (Liverpool to Manchester) and St Helens (Liverpool to Wigan) lines imposed by the December 2008 timetable [4].
Network Rail's route NW 2023 runs for 20.7 kilometers (12.9 mi) from Springs Branch Junction, near Wigan, to Huyton Junction, near Huyton.
| NW 2023 | M-Ch | km |
| Springs Branch Junction | 0-00 | 0.00 |
| Ince Moss Junction | 0-44 | 0.90 |
| Bryn | 2-32 | 3.85 |
| Garswood | 3-56 | 5.95 |
| St Helens | 7-30 | 11.85 |
| St Helens Station Junction | 7-42 | 12.10 |
| Thatto Heath | 9-11 | 14.70 |
| Eccleston Park | 10-07 | 16.25 |
| Prescot | 10-77 | 17.65 |
| Huyton Junction | 12-69 | 20.70 |
All services on this route are operated by Northern Rail using Class 142, Class 150, or Class 156 DMUs.
Daytime hours of operation typically see 3 tph each way between Liverpool and Wigan, consisting of local stopping services every 30 minutes and an hourly long distance express which continues to Blackpool North[5]. The Blackpool North limited stop service calls only at Huyton, St Helens Central and Wigan in the Liverpool to Wigan leg of its journey.
The service then calls at Euxton Balshaw Lane, Leyland and Preston on the West Coast Main Line, Kirkham and Wesham on the Blackpool branch, terminating at Blackpool North. Some peak time trains additionally call at Poulton-le-Fylde before Blackpool.
Morning and evening peaks see an increase in service frequency, including some services originating or terminating at St Helens Central and some semi-fast services. First service departs Liverpool for Wigan at around 0530. The first train from St Helens leaves for Liverpool just before 0600, and Wigan's first departure for Liverpool is a little later at approximately 0610. Last departures from Wigan and Liverpool are around 2300, as of the December 2009 timetable[6].
December 2008 is notable as it brought extensive changes to the Northern Rail timetable, to fit in with new increased-frequency services from Virgin Trains[7]. Timings were altered on all services. Most Liverpool to Wigan daytime local stopping services had previously omitted Edge Hill, but all stopping services on the route now call there.
December 2008 also marked the withdrawal of two relatively infrequent but notable services on this line[8]:
An hourly stopping service operates on the route in both directions between Liverpool and Blackpool North calling at open stations en route. As of December 2009, Edge Hill, Eccleston Park and Bryn do not have a regularly scheduled Sunday service.
Roby used to be closed on Sundays but is now operational all week.
The section of line from St Helens to Wigan was opened on 1 December 1869 by the Lancashire Union Railway,[9][10] and the line from Huyton to St Helens was opened on 1 November 1871 by the London and North Western Railway.
|
||||||||||