Liverpool to greenlight further Sandhills station updates
Merseytraval is seeking permission to upgrade the station to cope with increased passenger numbers since the opening of Everton’s Hill Dickinson Stadium.
After the installation of a new footbridge to accommodate the thousands of Everton supporters who use the station following the club’s move from Goodison Park to Liverpool’s waterfront, additional improvements are now planned.
Operated by Merseyrail, Sandhills is the closest train station to Hill Dickinson Stadium at Bramley-Moore Dock, which can hold 54,000 fans.
Matchdays throughout the 2025/26 season saw a spike in users of the station, prompting safety concerns.
As a result, Merseyrail is seeking to expand capacity of Sandhills and create destination specific queues as part of the crowd management strategy.
Planning documents submitted to Liverpool City Council state that it has “become evident that the station’s continued ability to cope with the demand seen on match/event days requires further improvements to able to efficiently and effectively handle the volume of pedestrian traffic being generated”.
Owen Ellis Architects worked with Merseytravel on the application, which can be found by searching reference 26F/1465 on Liverpool City Council’s planning portal.
At the same meeting, Liverpool City Council’s planning committee is recommended to approve plans for a temporary 5,000 sq ft marquee for events at Allerton Golf Club.
The tent is required so that the club can continue to host events over the next three years while it is waiting to build a 66-bed hotel that was approved at appeal two and a half years ago.
The interim solution is required as the hotel project has been held up by a range of factors including the post-Covid leisure market downturn, and its “gradual but rather than immediate” recovery, and the rising cost of borrowing, according to planning documents.
Brock Carmichael Architects and Roman Summer Associates are advising Allerton Golf Trading.
To learn more, search for reference number 26F/0174 on Liverpool City Council’s planning portal.
