Liverpool Lime Street reopens after eight-week closure
Train services to and from Liverpool Lime Street have restarted today after an eight-week programme of works to upgrade and lengthen platforms at the station.
The upgrade works, which have been ongoing for nearly nine months over various closures, have now largely completed and have delivered remodelled, lengthened and widened platforms to provide more space for trains and passengers. The latest set of works began on 2 June.
The latest upgrade works provided upgrades to platforms 1 and 2. Two more days of works – Sunday 2 September and Sunday 14 October – are needed before platforms 1 and 2 come into public use, but once complete, these will allow an extra three services per hour in and out of the station, including direct services to Scotland.
During the closures, trains have been terminating at Liverpool South Parkway.
Overall, the project has seen around two miles of track upgrades with a remodelled track layout to the station’s entrance also undertaken. There have also been works to signalling equipment and overhead lines, with signalling control now moved to Manchester’s Rail Operating Centre to increase journey reliability.
Steve Rotheram, Liverpool City Region Metro Mayor, said: “These improvements will significantly improve services for rail users in the Liverpool City Region, and I’m pleased they have been completed on time.
“This is only the start of the ambitions we have set out in the Long Term Rail Strategy, helping to get the city region moving more efficiently and drive increased growth and investment in the area.
“We really appreciate the patience shown by passengers over the last eight weeks and I’m sure they will be pleased by the improved and increased number of services that these upgrades will bring.”
Lime Street experienced an emergency closure in January this year, caused by “severe corrosion” on structures carrying overhead lines.
Great photo
By Robert Alatt
What has been kept under wraps (well, probably just more to do with Liverpool not having a media sector anymore..) is that due to the recent timetable debacle, those Scotland services – both direct to Glasgow, as well as Edinburgh via the world – are now not coming any time soon. Will they happen at all, even?
There are also the significant gaps where “Northern Connect” ought to be, and all in all Liverpool’s railways are weaker in 2018 than they were in 2017 with no hint of anyone doing anything about it.
Quite the reverse. When the East Midlands service is split and transferred to TPE, it introduces further weakness directly, including the possibility of it being another service sent to Manchester Airport rather than Liverpool, what with it falling under TfNs gaze.
By Mike
We have all these restored stations but no trains.
By Elephant
well done everyone and especially my bro david who worked nights of helping complete the job
By rebecca
Should have been back to normal yesterday but same old story. Rainhill 2pm cancelled. Got a bus instead. Return train from lime St cancelled. Got another train 30 min later to a different station then had to get a bus. Totally unacceptable public service. Feel sorry for the staff having to take flak for poor management. Time to re nationalise.
By Dave Bayliss