Crewe–Liverpool line

The Crewe–Liverpool line is a railway line in North West England, running from Crewe on the West Coast Main Line to Liverpool Lime Street via Weaver Junction.

Crewe–Liverpool line
London Midland Class 350 at Liverpool.
Overview
Locale	Liverpool Crewe Merseyside Cheshire North West England
Operation
Owner	Network Rail
Operator(s)	East Midlands Railway London Northwestern Railway Northern TransPennine Express Avanti West Coast
Technical
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8 ^1⁄2 in) standard gauge
Route map Wirral line to Moorfields Liverpool Lime Street Wirral line to Liverpool Central Edge Hill Liverpool–Manchester line to Wavertree Technology Park Edge Hill Intercity Depot Wavertree Sefton Park Mossley Hill West Allerton Allerton Northern line to Cressington Liverpool South Parkway for John Lennon Airport Allerton TMD Northern line to Hunts Cross to Port of Garston Halebank Jaguar Land Rover Halewood Body & Assembly Speke Merseytravel boundary Ditton to Fiddlers Ferry power station and Warrington Arpley yard Runcorn Railway Bridge over River Mersey Runcorn Halton Curve to Frodsham Chester–Manchester line through Sutton Tunnel Sutton Weaver  M56  West Coast Main Line to Warrington Bank Quay Weaver Junction Dutton Viaduct over River Weaver Acton Bridge Hartford curve Mid-Cheshire line to Cuddington │ to Greenbank Hartford Vale Royal Viaduct over Weaver Navigation Winsford North Wales Coast Line to Chester Crewe–Manchester line to Sandbach Crewe Crewe–Derby line to Alsager Welsh Marches line to Nantwich West Coast Main Line to Stafford

History

The line was built in stages by the Liverpool and Manchester Railway, the St Helens and Runcorn Gap Railway and the London and North Western Railway during the mid-19th century. The route became part of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway in 1923, passing to the London Midland Region of British Railways in 1948.

Electrification

The line was electrified at 25 kV AC, using overhead wires under the BR 1955 Modernisation Plan. In 1959, preparations began at Liverpool Lime Street for the first stage of electrification of the West Coast Main Line.[1] On 1 January 1962, electric services between Liverpool Lime Street and Crewe officially began.[2]

Weaver Junction to Liverpool signalling

Re-signalling work from Liverpool to Weaver Junction was underway in 2016. Signal control will move to the Manchester rail operating centre removing five local signal boxes. The signal improvements will improve journey times on this section of track.[3]

Services

Services along the full length of the line are operated by Avanti West Coast and London Northwestern Railway, with East Midlands Railway, Northern and TransPennine Express operating between Liverpool South Parkway and Lime Street, a section which is shared by the Liverpool–Manchester lines.

References

1. Cadwallader & Jenkins 2010, p. 55
2. Cadwallader & Jenkins 2010, p. 56
3. "£340m railway upgrade planned for Liverpool City Region". Network Rail. 21 March 2016. Retrieved 25 February 2017.

Sources

• Cadwallader, Jonathan; Jenkins, Martin (2010). Merseyside Electrics. Ian Allan. ISBN 9780711034174. OCLC 455806364.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)