Following closely on the heels of a £4 million upgrade for the Wigan to Manchester railway line, Network Rail is investing a further £1.5 million on the stretch of track between Wigan and Southport.

Smoother and quieter journeys for passengers will result from a project starting this weekend that will see a total of 3,648 yards of track in four different worksites completely renewed.

The worksites are Wyke Cop, Hoscar, Chapel Lane and Parbold, where a total of 7,300 yards of new rail will be laid on just over 5,000 new concrete or steel sleepers embedded in 9,388 tonnes of new ballast. Nineteen engineering trains will be used to bring the new material in and take the old away from the worksites so there will be no need for additional heavy lorries on the rural roads.

Jo Kaye, Network Rail’s area general manager thanked passengers for their patience and understanding while the vital work was carried out. “The work will undoubtedly cause inconvenience to some people while it is carried out, and for this I apologise. However, doing it in one big ‘hit’ rather than spread out over a series of separate closures means we can achieve more work and in the long run cause much less inconvenience to passengers.”

To enable the work to be carried out the line will close from 11 pm on Friday (19 October) and will reopen again in time for the start of service on Monday 29 October. During the closure, train operator Northern will provide alternative road transport between the stations on the route.

The closure will also affect the numerous level crossings and farm crossings on the line:-

Pool Hey and Wyke Cop will be closed from 11 pm Friday 19 until 6 am Monday 22 October
Hoscar, Frog Lane and Dean Lane will be closed from midday Saturday 20 until 6 am Wednesday 24 October
Parbold and Chapel Lane will be closed from 4 am Tuesday 23 until 5.30 am Monday 29 October
During the level crossing closures diversionary routes have been agreed with the highway authority, emergency services have been advised and letters have been sent to people living near the railway where the work is taking place.