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Thursday 25 Aug 2016

Passengers travelling between Preston and Bolton urged to check before they travel this bank holiday weekend

Region & Route:

| North West & Central

Passengers are being reminded that work in Chorley, which will enable electric trains to run between Manchester and Preston, will affect rail services between Preston and Bolton over the August bank holiday weekend.

The improvements, part of Network Rail’s multi-billion pound Railway Upgrade Plan, means there will be a three day closure of the line between Preston and Bolton from Saturday 27 to Monday 29 August 2016.

Engineers will be replacing the roof of the station subway and realign tracks in the area as part of work to allow electric trains, which will enable greater capacity on the line, to run through Chorley from December 2017.

Work has been ongoing at weekends between Preston and Bolton since June with work well under way to rebuild the northbound platform. A temporary platform and the phased reconstruction of the southbound platform has allowed the station to remain open during the week, minimising disruption to the thousands of passengers who travel by train through the area every day.

Engineers replaced the roof deck over the public subway next to the station earlier in August to support the increased weight from an increase in train services. To complete work on the second subway, a road closure is required on Steeley Lane from 25 – 30 August to allow a crane to access the railway. Clearly marked diversions will be in place for pedestrians, cyclists and drivers.

Noel Connolly, head of programme management for Network Rail, said: “We have worked closely with Northern so that passengers are aware of ongoing changes to weekend and evening train services between Preston and Bolton while we upgrade the railway through Chorley.

“This is essential work and I’d like to thank passengers for their continued understanding. The upgrade and wider investment will result in a better, faster, more reliable railway that will serve passengers for many decades to come and help boost the economy across the north of England.”

Alex Hynes, managing director, Northern said: “This essential work at Chorley is to enable electric trains to operate between Manchester and Preston via Bolton – an exciting prospect for the future for many of our customers.

“We’d like to remind customers to check before they travel over the bank holiday weekend and speak to our colleagues at Chorley for the latest up-to-date information.”

Upgrading the railway between Manchester and Preston via Bolton is a key part of the wider improvements being made in the north of England as part of the Northern Programmes investment, helping to deliver more frequent and reliable services. From December 2017, passengers travelling on the route will feel the benefits of faster journeys and more spacious electric trains.