Headbolt Lane station stays on track
Network Rail has lodged a planning application with Knowsley Council for a train station in Kirkby that will see the Merseyrail network extended and potentially connected to Skelmersdale in the future.
The three-platform Headbolt Lane station would replace Kirkby as the interchange between the Merseyrail Northern Line and unelectrified Kirkby-Wigan line.
The development forms part of the plans to build a new rail link to Skelmersdale, which would connect to the Merseyrail network via the Kirkby branch.
Plans for the Skelmersdale extension are still being worked up while the Headbolt Lane scheme is progressing more quickly. However, the new station is to be designed to be able to accommodate any future Merseyrail extension to Skelmersdale.
In March, the station project was given a £66m funding injection. The cash came from the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority’s Transforming Cities Fund.
Plans for the station include a 300-space car park and a bus interchange.
The new station could be operational in 2023.
Good to hear this is progressing, however do they have to call it Headbolt Lane station, it`s like something out of the Munsters.
It could be called Kirkby Brook( nearby) or Tower Hill.
Meanwhile where is Steve Rotheram`s much fanfared Baltic station, to serve those who live and work in the Baltic and St James, it`s all gone quiet.
By Anonymous
This station is easy to achieve. I’ll be impressed by Merseyrail and the Metro Mayor when some new stations open up in the core of the city….how about a station for Smithdown Road (densely populated)? Or how about the reopening of the Wapping and Waterloo tunnels to tie in and create a vastly extended Merseyrail network to serve the south central districts of the city? C’mon Mr Rotherham think big and at least ask Government for assistance….you never know!
By Old Hall Street
Very good news, I hope they took in board popular suggestions in the consultation of improving waiting provision (e.g a small cafe/shop and platform sheltering).
Doubt it would be called Tower hill with the tower of London tube station having that name.
Kirkby brook I’d certainly agree is more likely, appropriate and better than Headbolt lane.
By Anonymous
Steve Rotherham is as much use as a chocolate tea pot you only seem to see him around election times.
By Anonymous
No doubt it’s good news for the good folk of Kirkby, but could someone explain to me the reason behind the scheme’s complete lack of greening or landscaping that would not only help towards reducing the project’s carbon footprint but would elevate a relatively modest design (understandably) from the ‘bland’ edge of the scale to something approaching ‘easier on the eye’? We need to adopt the principle laid down by the authorities in European cities whereby developers are mandated to incorporate quality greening aspects within their schemes to secure approval. Surely our children and grandchildren deserve no less?
By Dezine
Re- landscaping, well there is some grass there which could be seeded with wild flowers, but half a dozen thoughtfully placed trees would be appreciated too
I think flower beds would not be maintained so would be wasted money, and funds would be better used providing a much longer shelter on the platform for those cold and rainy waits.
By Anonymous
Through 3 platforms that sound like some forward planning but the reality seems to be 2 platforms for Merseyrail & 1 for Northern but it seems to rule out more than a single line passing through. I can’t see what advantage is gained over just 2 parallel platforms one for NR and one for Merseyrail but I can see lots of loss of expandability.
This station would rule out a full integration of Rainford, Skelmersdale & Wigan into Merseyrail. It would preclude the establishment of direct services from Liverpool to Manchester via Wigan and Salford, a service that would provide north Liverpool with a better connection to Manchester than Northern Power Rail ever could.
By JB
How does this benefit Rainford Junction? I use the train to Kirkby to get to Liverpool. I assume we are now defunct
By Viv sutton