Heswall railway station

Heswall railway station is a railway station on the eastern edge of the town of Heswall on the Wirral Peninsula in England. It is on the Borderlands Line. The station and all trains serving it are operated by Transport for Wales. In 2008 the station was refurbished. The station was previously known as Heswall Hills, as there was previously another station serving Heswall, on the Birkenhead Railway's branch line from West Kirby to Hooton, that is now a footpath known as the Wirral Way.

This article is about the present-day station serving Heswall. For the former station on the Hooton–West Kirby line, see Heswall railway station (Birkenhead Railway).

Heswall
Location
Place	Heswall
Local authority	Wirral
Coordinates	53.330°N 3.074°W / 53.330; -3.074
Grid reference	SJ286819
Operations
Station code	HSW
Managed by	Transport for Wales
Number of platforms	2
DfT category	F2
Live arrivals/departures, station information and onward connections from National Rail Enquiries
Annual rail passenger usage*
2014/15	55,860
2015/16	56,660
2016/17	54,070
2017/18	58,452
2018/19	91,736
Passenger Transport Executive
PTE	Merseytravel
Zone	B2
History
Original company	North Wales and Liverpool Joint Railway
Pre-grouping	Great Central Railway
Post-grouping	London and North Eastern Railway
1 May 1898	opened as Heswall Hills
7 May 1973	renamed Heswall
National Rail – UK railway stations
Annual estimated passenger usage based on sales of tickets in stated financial year(s) which end or originate at Heswall from Office of Rail and Road statistics. Methodology may vary year on year.

History

The railway line between Bidston and Hawarden Bridge was authorised on 31 July 1885, and was originally to be a line jointly owned by the Wirral Railway (WR) and the Wrexham, Mold and Connah's Quay Railway (WMCQ), but in 1889 the WR share was transferred to the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway (MS&LR).[1] Construction began in 1892; the line went through several changes of name, and by the time of its opening (goods 16 March 1896, passengers 18 May), was known as the North Wales and Liverpool Joint Railway.[2]

A station known as Heswall Hills was opened two years later, on 1 May 1898.[3][4] The MS&LR in due course became the Great Central Railway (GCR), which absorbed the WMCQ on 1 January 1905, so that by the time of the 1923 Grouping the line was wholly owned by the GCR, and so became part of the London and North Eastern Railway on 1 January 1923.[5]

Heswall Hills station was renamed Heswall on 7 May 1973.[3]

Freight and goods

The station had an extensive goods yard with sidings to the south-west of the station,[6] where daily shunting operations were carried out until the advent of diesel railcar operations in 1960, at which time light freight operations ceased. Although, the yard was still used until 30 October 1965.[7] The goods yard and sidings were sold off for housing development in about 1967.

However, the line continued to be used for heavy freight, as iron ore freight trains also passed through the station.[8][9] These freight trains operated from Bidston Dock to the John Summers steelworks in Shotton. The steam locomotives could be heard at night for at least five miles climbing Storeton Bank, from Upton station to Heswall. The Class 9F locomotive 92203, later named as Black Prince, worked the final steam-hauled iron ore train in November 1967.[10][11][12] The freight service itself ended around 1980.

Future

Proposals have been put forward to electrify the track as part of the Borderlands Electrification scheme. Merseyrail would like to see the line electrified to link with its own third-rail service, with a doubling of the frequency of services.[13] This would allow the station to serve as a part of a direct service to Liverpool.

In June 2018 it was announced that, as part of the new KeolisAmey franchise to operate the Wales and Borders rail service, the frequency of trains on the line would increase to 2tph from December 2021.[14][15]

Facilities

The station facilities are somewhat rudimentary, and the station is unstaffed at nearly all times.[16] Each of the two platforms has a waiting shelter with seating. There is a payphone, and live departure and arrival screens for passenger information, but no booking office. There is a small station car park, with space for 16 cars. Wheelchair and pram access to the platforms is possible, via the access ramps.

Services

From Monday to Saturday, there is an hourly service between Bidston and Wrexham Central (two-hourly in the evening and on public holidays).[17] There is a service every 90 minutes each way on Sundays. Services are provided by an Transport for Wales Class 150/2 "Sprinter" DMU.

Gallery

• 
  An Arriva Trains Wales Class 150 arrives at the station.
• 
  The station underpass.
• 
  One of the station platforms.
• 
  An Arriva Trains Wales Class 150 departs from the station.

References

1. Dow, George (1962). Great Central, Volume Two: Dominion of Watkin, 1864-1899. Shepperton: Ian Allan. pp. 214, 216. ISBN 0-7110-1469-8.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
2. Dow 1962, pp. 222,226,228–9,292
3. Butt, R.V.J. (1995). The Directory of Railway Stations. Yeovil: Patrick Stephens Ltd. p. 119. ISBN 1-85260-508-1. R508.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
4. Dow 1962, p. 295
5. Dow, George (1965). Great Central, Volume Three: Fay Sets the Pace, 1900-1922. Shepperton: Ian Allan. pp. 73, 347, 350. ISBN 0-7110-0263-0.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
6. Mitchell & Smith 2013, map XXX
7. Mitchell & Smith 2013, fig. 87
8. "92108 Heswall Hills Stn. 18.7.67". Flickr. Retrieved 25 June 2015.
9. "92xxx Heswall Hills Stn. 18.7.67". Flickr. Retrieved 25 June 2015.
10. "The Famous Black Prince". oldsteamers.com. Retrieved 25 June 2015.
11. "Memories of Bank Hall, Birkenhead & Beyond, Part Two, as recalled by Mal Pratt, Birkenhead 1966 - 1968". derbysulzers.com. Retrieved 25 June 2015.
12. "Black Prince Steam Locomotive". The Olden Days - A Trip Down Memory Lane. Retrieved 25 June 2015.
13. Salveson, Paul. "Bidston to the Borderlands" (PDF). Today's Railways UK (116): 50. Retrieved 25 June 2015.
14. "What's Happening in North Wales | Transport for Wales". tfw.gov.wales. Retrieved 6 June 2018.
15. "Transport leaders outline ambitious plans for Wrexham to Bidston train line". The Leader. Retrieved 15 March 2020.
16. "Station Facilities for Heswall". National Rail. Retrieved 18 December 2013.
17. Table 101 National Rail timetable, May 2017

Sources

• Mitchell, Vic; Smith, Keith (2013). Wrexham to New Brighton. West Sussex: Middleton Press. ISBN 9781908174475. OCLC 859543196.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)

External links

• Train times and station information for Heswall railway station from National Rail

Preceding station	National Rail			Following station
Neston		Transport for Wales Borderlands Line		Upton
	Historical railways
Neston		Great Central Railway North Wales and Liverpool Railway		Storeton