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Wednesday 14 Jun 2023

Revised schedule announced for Wigan to Bolton railway bridge work

Region & Route:

North West & Central

| North West & Central: North West

Engineers have released a revised schedule to replace a road bridge over the railway in Greater Manchester after earlier demolition work was unable to take place.

Network Rail is currently investing £78m to upgrade a six-mile stretch of railway between Wigan and Bolton to enable electric trains to serve the key North West towns in the future.

For the complex web of overhead electric wires to be installed, alterations need to be made to 17 bridges along the route.

In early May, Ladies Lane bridge in Hindley was meant to be demolished so a modern, more suitable structure for the new electrified railway equipment could be built.

But problems aligning this major work with other utility companies meant that the demolition could not happen as originally planned.

As demolition work like this cannot take place while trains are running, Network Rail will need to close the route for a second time at the end of this month.

Passengers are being advised of the six-day railway closure between Saturday 24 June and Friday 30 June. 

During this time rail replacement buses will keep people on the move Wigan North Western, Westhoughton, Daisy Hill, Ince and Lostock.

Rail travellers are being urged to check www.nationalrail.co.uk to plan their trips and are advised to allow extra time to make their journeys. 

Claire Davis, scheme project manager at Network Rail, said: “We’re sorry to passengers and residents facing additional disruption due to the challenges we’ve faced with our replacement of Ladies Lane bridge. We know that this major investment to electrify the railway at Hindley is disruptive and we’re working as hard as we can to get things back on schedule.

“We thank people for their continued understanding while we carry out this complex project which in future will see longer, cleaner electric trains running between Wigan and Bolton.”

Meanwhile Hindley station itself, which is right by Ladies Lane bridge, will remain closed to passengers until Monday 24 July.

The road closure is also being extended until 1 September, with a diversion route in place for road users.*

The £78m Wigan-Bolton electrification project was announced by the Department of Transport in September 2021 and is scheduled to be finished by 2025.

It will see:

• 450 new overhead line equipment stanchions, and modifications to 17 bridges and two-level crossings.
• Platform extensions at Hindley, Westhoughton and Ince stations to reduce overcrowding at peak times and cater for six-carriage trains in the future.
• Providing train operators with more operational flexibility and bring this part of the rail network in line with recent upgrades to a train maintenance facility at Wigan Springs Branch.

For more information on railway electrification visit: https://www.networkrail.co.uk/communities/living-by-the-railway/electrification/overhead-line-equipment/