The Wigan Junction Railways connected Glazebrook West Junction with the Lancashire Coalfields at Wigan.

History

The Wigan Junction Railways (WJR) was incorporated on 16 July 1874. It was to link the coalfields around Wigan with the

Cheshire Lines Committee The Cheshire Lines Committee (CLC) was formed in the 1860s and became the second-largest joint railway in Great Britain. The committee, which was often styled the Cheshire Lines Railway, operated of track in the then counties of Lancashire a ...

(CLC) line at , on the line between

Liverpool Central Liverpool Central railway station in Liverpool, England, forms a central hub of the Merseyrail network, being on both the Northern Line and the Wirral Line. The station is located underground on two levels, below the site of a former mainline ...

and Manchester Central. Promoted by local businessmen, it came to the interest of the board of the

Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway The Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway (MS&LR) was formed in 1847 when the Sheffield, Ashton-under-Lyne and Manchester Railway joined with authorised but unbuilt railway companies, forming a proposed network from Manchester to Grimsb ...

(MSLR) which suggested that it might become an extension of the CLC, in which the MSLR had a one-third share. However, of the MSLR's other two joint partners in the CLC, the

Midland Railway The Midland Railway (MR) was a railway company in the United Kingdom from 1844. The Midland was one of the largest railway companies in Britain in the early 20th century, and the largest employer in Derby, where it had its headquarters. It ama ...

(MR) were in favour, whereas the Great Northern Railway (GNR) were not. Accordingly, the MSLR and MR decided that its construction should be supported by both companies, and later on be formally added to the

Sheffield and Midland Railway Companies' Committee The Sheffield and Midland Railway Companies' Committee was incorporated by Act of Parliament in 1869 as a joint venture between the Midland Railway and the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway. Origins For many years the Midland had b ...

(SMRCC), a body which was owned jointly by the MSLR and MR only. Construction began on 27 October 1876, the first sod being cut by the

Home Secretary The secretary of state for the Home Department, otherwise known as the home secretary, is a senior minister of the Crown in the Government of the United Kingdom. The home secretary leads the Home Office, and is responsible for all national s ...

, the Rt. Hon. R.A. Cross, who was also MP for South West Lancashire. The line was opened between Glazebrook and Strangeways for goods on 16 October 1879, and was extended to Wigan on 1 April 1884; passenger services also began on 1 April 1884. The trains were provided by the MSLR.

Wigan Central railway station Wigan Central railway station was a railway station near the centre of Wigan, Lancashire, England. Location and construction Wigan Central station was on Station Road, some way from the two main stations ( North Western and Wallgate) which a ...

was opened on 3 October 1892. A branch to St Helens was built from Lowton St. Marys: the

Liverpool, St Helens and South Lancashire Railway The Liverpool, St Helens and South Lancashire Railway, was formed in 1889, but no services ran until 1895 and then only freight. Passenger services did not start until 1900. It incorporated the St Helens and Wigan Junction Railway. It was taken ...

(LSHSL); it opened on 2 January 1900. The CLC constructed a curve from their line at Dam Lane Junction to the WJR line at Glazebrook Moss Junction; known as ''Glazebrook West Curve''. in length, it was authorised on 25 May 1900 and opened on 1 July 1900, creating a triangular junction at Glazebrook; by this means, trains from Wigan (and also St. Helens) could run to

Warrington Warrington () is a town and unparished area in the borough of the same name in the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England, on the banks of the River Mersey. It is east of Liverpool, and west of Manchester. The population in 2019 was estimat ...

and

. On 4 August 1905 the GCR was authorised to absorb both the WJR and the LSHSL, which was formally carried out on 1 January 1906.

Route

* Wigan Central * Lower Ince * Hindley South * Bickershaw and Abram * West Leigh and Bedford * Lowton St Mary'sDisused Stations: Lowton St. Marys
/ref> *

Culcheth Culcheth is a village in the Borough of Warrington, ceremonial county of Cheshire and historic county of Lancashire, England, six miles (10 km) north-east of Warrington town centre; it is the principal settlement in Culcheth and Glazebury ci ...

* Newchurch Halt * In April 1884, there were seven trains in each direction per day, all running between and Wigan. Six of them called at all stations between Glazebrook and Wigan, and some also called at , and . There were two expresses: the 10:40 from Manchester reached Wigan at 11:15, calling only at Glazebrook; and the 12:00 from Wigan, which ran non-stop to Manchester in half an hour. The Sunday service was of just two trains in each direction, calling at Urmston, Flixton, Irlam and all stations between Glazebrook and Wigan.

Future

In 2009 ATOC identified the south part of the line connecting Glazebrook with the Chat Moss line as a feasible link line for freight use.

Notes

References

* * * * *{{cite web , url=http://www.leighrayment.com/commons/Lcommons1.htm , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090813003354/http://www.leighrayment.com/commons/Lcommons1.htm , archive-date=13 August 2009 , title=The House of Commons: Constituencies Beginning with L , first=Leigh , last=Rayment , date=11 May 2010 , work=Leigh Rayment's Peerage Page , location=Sydney, NSW , url-status=usurped , access-date=13 June 2010 Closed railway lines in North West England Rail transport in Greater Manchester Rail transport in Cheshire Great Central Railway