Skelmersdale railway station was a station located on the
Skelmersdale branch
The Skelmersdale branch was a standard gauge railway (SKE) which connected the Liverpool, Ormskirk and Preston Railway at Ormskirk with Rainford Junction via Skelmersdale. At Rainford it connected with the Liverpool and Bury Railway and the St. ...
at
Skelmersdale
Skelmersdale is a town in Lancashire, England, on the River Tawd, west of Wigan, northeast of Liverpool and southwest of Preston. In 2006, it had a population of 38,813. The town is known locally as Skem .
While the first record of the tow ...
,
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
. The station was originally named Blague Gate, having its name changed to Skelmersdale on 8 August 1874 and carried passengers from 1858 to 1956.
History
![Hartford, Northwich and Rainford RJD 92](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ad/Hartford%2C_Northwich_and_Rainford_RJD_92.jpg)
The station was one of several built by the
East Lancashire Railway
East Lancashire Railway is a heritage railway line in North West England which runs between Heywood, Greater Manchester and Rawtenstall in Lancashire. There are intermediate stations at Bury Bolton Street railway station, Bury Bolton Street, ...
on their branch line from Ormskirk to
Rainford Junction. It opened on 1 March 1858, but after a year became part of the
Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway
The Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway (L&YR) was a major British railway company before the 1923 Grouping. It was incorporated in 1847 from an amalgamation of several existing railways. It was the third-largest railway system based in northern ...
system when the ELR was taken over by that company. The station consisted of two platforms with the main building on the northbound side. A wooden signal box was provided to control the adjacent
level crossing
A level crossing is an intersection where a railway line crosses a road, Trail, path, or (in rare situations) airport runway, at the same level, as opposed to the railway line crossing over or under using an Overpass#Railway, overpass ...
, passing loop and nearby goods yard. The line towards Ormskirk was subsequently doubled in 1875, the year after the station was renamed.
Throughout its life the route operated as a self-contained branch, though connections were available for ,
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...
& Blackpool at Ormskirk and for , and
Manchester Victoria
Manchester Victoria station in Manchester, England is a combined mainline railway station and Metrolink tram stop. Situated to the north of the city centre on Hunts Bank, close to Manchester Cathedral, it adjoins Manchester Arena which was ...
at Rainford. The service was also generous, with the L&Y running a steam
railmotor
Railmotor is a term used in the United Kingdom and elsewhere for a railway lightweight railcar, usually consisting of a railway carriage with a steam traction unit, or a diesel or petrol engine, integrated into it.
Steam railcars
Overview
In th ...
service of 19 trains per day in each direction from 1906. A similar pattern continued after the route became part of the
London, Midland and Scottish Railway
The London, Midland and Scottish Railway (LMSIt has been argued that the initials LMSR should be used to be consistent with LNER, GWR and SR. The London, Midland and Scottish Railway's corporate image used LMS, and this is what is generally u ...
in January 1923, but increasing road competition after World War II and the subsequent
nationalisation
Nationalization (nationalisation in British English) is the process of transforming privately-owned assets into public assets by bringing them under the public ownership of a national government or state. Nationalization usually refers to pri ...
of the railways in 1948 saw traffic levels decline.
The station was closed to passenger traffic by the
British Transport Commission
The British Transport Commission (BTC) was created by Clement Attlee's post-war Labour government as a part of its nationalisation programme, to oversee railways, canals and road freight transport in Great Britain (Northern Ireland had the se ...
on 5 November 1956, with the line south to Rainford closing completely on 16 November 1961 and the rest on 4 November 1963, when goods traffic at the station ceased. The track was lifted in 1968 and station was demolished soon afterwards; the B5312 road (known as ''Railway Road'') now passes through the site.
Ironically this was done just as the town was undergoing a significant increase in population levels and associated housing development, having been designated as one of the second wave of
new towns
A planned community, planned city, planned town, or planned settlement is any community that was carefully planned from its inception and is typically constructed on previously undeveloped land. This contrasts with settlements that evolve ...
in 1961 (it was chosen, along with
Runcorn
Runcorn is an industrial town and cargo port in the Borough of Halton in Cheshire, England. Its population in 2011 was 61,789. The town is in the southeast of the Liverpool City Region, with Liverpool to the northwest across the River Mersey. ...
as an overspill town for Liverpool).
Reopening proposals
Skelmersdale has been described as the largest town in North-West England that doesn't have a railway station, although
Leigh, Greater Manchester
Leigh is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan, Greater Manchester, England, on low-lying land northwest of Chat Moss.
Within the boundaries of the Historic counties of England, historic county of Lancashire, Leigh was originally the cen ...
, which also has no station is larger. There have been many discussions about reopening a railway station in Skelmersdale. This would require a three-mile rail restoration. In January 2009, the ''
Liverpool Echo
The ''Liverpool Echo'' is a newspaper published by Trinity Mirror North West & North Wales – a subsidiary company of Reach plc and is based in St Paul's Square, Liverpool, Merseyside, England. It is published Monday to Sunday, and is Liverp ...
'' newspaper reported that recommendations have been put to councillors to endorse the £60m plan to build a new railway station in Skelmersdale, reconnecting the town with Liverpool.
2009
In June 2009, the
Association of Train Operating Companies
The Rail Delivery Group (RDG), previously the Association of Train Operating Companies, is the British rail industry membership body that brings together passenger and freight rail companies, Network Rail and High Speed 2.
History
From 24 Oc ...
, in its
Expanding Access to the Rail Network report, called for funding for the reopening of this station as part of a £500m scheme to open 33 stations on 14 lines closed in the
Beeching Axe
The Beeching cuts (also Beeching Axe) was a plan to increase the efficiency of the nationalised railway system in Great Britain. The plan was outlined in two reports: ''The Reshaping of British Railways'' (1963) and ''The Development of the ...
, including seven new parkway stations. The report proposes extending the line from by laying 3 miles of new single track along the previous route to the town, at a cost estimated to be in the region of £31million. The route is largely intact, though a deviation north of
Westhead
Westhead is a village in the West Lancashire district of Lancashire, England. As of 2014, the estimated population was 886.
History
Westhead was, for most of its existence, a hamlet in the Township (England), township of Lathom. It was locat ...
would be required. The proposed station would be on the north west corner of town near the Skelmersdale Ring Road, right next to where the old station once was. A feasibility study on the project jointly funded by
Merseytravel
Merseytravel is the passenger transport executive, responsible for the coordination of public transport in the Liverpool City Region in North West England. Merseytravel was established on 1 December 1969 as the Merseyside Passenger Transpor ...
,
Merseyrail
Merseyrail is a commuter rail network serving the Liverpool City Region and adjacent areas of Cheshire and Lancashire. Merseyrail operates 66 railway stations across two lines – the Northern Line and Wirral Line, which are dedicated electri ...
, Lancashire County Council & West Lancs Borough Council was due to begin in the autumn of 2013.
2015
Lancashire County Council
Lancashire County Council is the upper-tier local authority for the non-metropolitan county of Lancashire, England. It consists of 84 councillors. Since the 2017 election, the council has been under Conservative control.
Prior to the 2009 La ...
approved the initiation of a more detailed evaluation on 1 June 2015.
This option selection process will take the project to completing Network Rail's
GRIP ''stage 3'' level of development in January 2017.
The evaluation is to be developed in partnership with
Network Rail
Network Rail Limited is the owner (via its subsidiary Network Rail Infrastructure Limited, which was known as Railtrack plc before 2002) and infrastructure manager of most of the railway network in Great Britain. Network Rail is an "arm's leng ...
and Merseytravel.
Network Rail has suggested a construction date commencing in April 2021, with services beginning from December 2023,
once the single option development and detailed design stages in the GRIP process have been achieved. The likely route for the new link is southwards to join the
Kirkby branch line between Upholland and Rainford rather than the original plans to go north via Ormskirk, so as to enable trains to travel to Wigan & Manchester as well as to Liverpool.
2017
In February 2017, Lancashire County Council confirmed that the preferred site for Skelmersdale railway station was the former site of
Glenburn Sports College
Glenburn Sports College was an 11–16 Mixed-sex education, mixed, Foundation school, foundation secondary school in Skelmersdale, Lancashire, England. It was established in 1967 and was part of the Glenburn Education Trust. It closed in 2016 due ...
/Westbank Campus. County Council Transport portfolio holder John Fillis said that the site "is big enough to provide a high quality station with scope to expand to meet future demand.". By September, Merseytravel announced that they would be committing £765,000 to the study into the reopening, estimating that the station could be open within a decade with a lot of additional funding. Merseytravel's plan would also see a new station built at
Headbolt Lane
Headbolt Lane is a new railway station in the Towerhill/Northwood area of Kirkby in Merseyside, North West England. The opening of a station in the area has been an objective of the local authority since 1972 and detailed plans have been under ...
in Kirkby. It has been proposed a new station at Skelmersdale would act as the terminus for Merseyrail's
Northern Line
The Northern line is a London Underground line that runs from North London to South London. It is printed in black on the Tube map. The Northern line is unique on the Underground network in having two different routes through central London, two ...
, with connections available to Wigan and Manchester. Initial estimates suggest that the scheme could cost around £300 million to develop. On page 36 of the
Liverpool City Region Combined Authority
The Liverpool City Region Combined Authority (LCRCA) is the combined authority of the Liverpool City Region. The Liverpool City Region includes the City of Liverpool local authority area plus the Metropolitan Boroughs of Knowsley, St Helens, ...
, Long Term Rail Strategy document of October 2017, it states that Merseytravel is currently working with Lancashire County Council and Network Rail to develop a plan to extend the Merseyrail network from Kirkby through to Skelmersdale, with work completed in 2019. They are considering 3rd rail electrification and other alternatives with a new station at Headbolt Lane to serve the Northwood area of Kirkby. The document on page 37 states two trials of electric 3rd rail/battery trains were planned to be undertaken in 2020, as one of the "alternatives".
2019
Lancashire County Council approved a plan in May 2019 to commission an outline business case into reopening the station which will be presented to the government.
2021
Merseytravel
Merseytravel is the passenger transport executive, responsible for the coordination of public transport in the Liverpool City Region in North West England. Merseytravel was established on 1 December 1969 as the Merseyside Passenger Transpor ...
confirmed in March 2021 that talks continue between themselves, Lancashire County Council and other partners about Skelmersdale railway station, in the context of additional funding being made available about
Headbolt Lane railway station
Headbolt Lane is a new railway station in the Towerhill/Northwood area of Kirkby in Merseyside, North West England. The opening of a station in the area has been an objective of the Metropolitan Borough of Knowsley, local authority since 1972 an ...
further along the Kirkby branch.
On November 2, West Lancashire Borough Council were asked to contribute £43,000 with Lancashire County Council's £245,900 towards the Skelmersdale Regeneration Plan, which would include new shops, the railway station, and other benefits.
2022
Government reinforces that the station proposals are being considered.
Rosie Cooper
Rosemary Elizabeth Cooper (born 5 September 1950) is a British health official and former Labour Party politician who has served as the chair of Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust since November 2022. Previously, she served as the Member of Parli ...
calls for the new Rail Minister to visit Skelmersdale, in order to aid the DfT's decision.
However, the Department for Transport announced in July 2022 that it was rejecting the Strategic Outline Business Case, throwing the scheme into doubt.
The DfT instead suggested that better bus links with the Kirkby–Wigan rail line would be a cheaper way of improving connectivity for Skelmersdale.
References
Sources
*
External links
Description via ''Disused Stations UK''
{{Proposed rail infrastructure projects in the United Kingdom
Disused railway stations in the Borough of West Lancashire
Former Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway stations
Railway stations in Great Britain opened in 1858
Railway stations in Great Britain closed in 1956
Proposed railway stations in England
Skelmersdale