Media centre

Friday 18 Nov 2022

Major £7.3m station overhaul for Salford Central passengers in 2023

Region & Route:

North West & Central

| North West & Central: North West

A major six-month renovation of Salford Central station upgrading platform heights, roof canopies, railway track and its signalling system will take place in the New Year.

Network Rail is investing £7.3m to overhaul Salford’s biggest railway station between 2 January and Summer 2023.

The much-needed station improvements will provide a better travelling experience for passengers and improve train reliability across Greater Manchester.

Platforms will be raised to reduce the gap between ground level and train doors meaning ramps can be used to board all services for the first time.

This will make the station accessible for disabled people, those with heavy luggage and parents or carers with buggies and pushchairs.

Passengers are being given advanced notice of the station improvements as the scale of the work means Salford Central will need to close for six months.

Trains will not stop at Salford Central during the work. Instead a peak time rail replacement shuttle service will run every 15 minutes between Salford Crescent, Salford Central and Manchester Victoria.

Joanna Feilding, scheme project manager for Network Rail, said: “This package of improvements for Salford Central will benefit the thousands of passengers who use the station each year and make it much more accessible.

“Because the work means we must close the station for six months we wanted to make people aware of the improvements to come. I’d like to thank people in advance for their patience and we’re looking forward to welcoming everyone back to the new and improved Salford Central station in summer 2023.”

Chris Jackson, regional director at Northern, said: “Salford Central has been serving the people of Salford and Manchester for 184 years. We welcome this much-needed investment, which will make a real difference to the customer experience and ensure the station can continue to serve the local community for many more generations to come.”

The work at Salford Central station is an important step to making rail travel accessible for all in Greater Manchester. 

Paul Dennett, City Mayor of Salford, said: “I’m delighted to hear this essential work will begin in the new year. Salford Central is at the heart of our new business district, New Bailey and needs this investment to make it truly accessible and fit for the 21^st century.”  

Andy Burnham, Mayor of Greater Manchester, said: “All of our city centre stations need significant investment and we have made the case for this. I’m pleased to see improvements being delivered in Salford, and I hope to see this mirrored across our region’s other railway stations.”

Passengers are advised to plan their journeys in advance by visiting www.nationalrail.co.uk.