Station code HUY DfT category D Number of platforms 4 (3 in use) | Grid reference SJ440906 Managed by Northern 2011/12 1.234 million | |
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Huyton railway station serves the area of Huyton in Merseyside, England. The station acts as an interchange between the Liverpool-Wigan Line and the northern route of the Liverpool-Manchester Line which diverge soon after the station. It is one of the busier stations on these lines. The station is close to the shopping centre and bus station.
Contents
History
Huyton station was opened in 1830 as part of George Stephenson's Liverpool and Manchester Railway, and as such is one of the oldest passenger railway stations in the world. The station was originally named as Huyton Lane Gate, then as Huyton Lane by 1839, and finally as Huyton around 1852. The oldest surviving station buildings are from the LNWR period. Until the 1970s, Huyton station had four platforms, but the two platforms on the northern side of the station (Platforms 3 and 4) were closed, and the track was lifted.
2010 modernisation
Almost £1 million was spent in modernising the station in 2010. The works include a new canopy on Platform 1, a new waiting shelter on Platform 2 and a new disability compliant toilet was also installed. Improvements also included updating the subway which provided better lighting, state-of-the-art CCTV and new seating areas.
Liverpool to Manchester electrification
As part of the electrification of the Liverpool-Manchester Line, Platform 3 was brought back into use in time for the December 2014 timetable change. This work also saw the station signal box closed and demolished as part of the associated resignalling scheme, which controlled the line between Roby and Rainhill (Earlestown line)/Prescot (Wigan line). The last few semaphore signals, which it formerly controlled, were removed in September 2012. Electrification has been in place since March 2015.
Future
Platform 4 is in the process of being re-instated, as part of the improvements involved with the Liverpool to Manchester and Wigan electrification. From December 2017, the new northern rail franchisee Arriva Rail North - operating under the brand 'Northern' - will also run through trains from here to Leeds via Manchester and Bradford Interchange.
Facilities
Huyton is staffed and open for approximately 18 hours a day and is equipped with a booking office, a payphone and a vending machine. There is undercover seating on each platform, as well as customer help points and live departure and arrival screens. Recent improvements include lifts to the platforms and ramped walkways from the subway, to allow step-free access to the platforms for passengers with wheelchairs or prams. Portable ramps are also available for access from the platforms to trains. The station is close to Huyton bus station and the local shopping centre. The station also has its own car park, a taxi rank and cycle racks.
Services
The station is situated on the Liverpool to Wigan Line and Stephenson's Liverpool to Manchester Line, with the junction between the two lines being to the east of the station. The station has regular services, which involve approximately 20–30 minutes of travel, to Liverpool, Manchester and Wigan. There are 10 trains per hour calling at the station, all operated by Northern or its subsidiary brand of Northern Electrics. (The TransPennine express between Liverpool and Newcastle upon Tyne passes through but does not stop.)
On Sundays, there is a less frequent service - 2tph to Lime Street and 1tph each to Manchester Airport via Manchester Piccadilly and Blackpool North via Wigan.