A giant crane lifted two new bridges into place at Warrington Bank Quay station this Easter to make future rail journeys more reliable for passengers and freight.
Time-lapse footage release by Network Rail today (Tuesday 6 April) shows the huge engineering project which took place over the bank holiday.
The £3.5m Great North Rail Project investment involved the massive crane removing an old bridge which carries two railway tracks on platform 1 and lifting the new one into place.
A footbridge outside the station was also upgraded and a disused bridge span was filled in.
This essential Easter bank holiday weekend work meant that trains weren’t able to call at the station.
Phil James, director for Network Rail’s North West route, said: “I’d like to thank passengers for their patience while we carried out these essential railway upgrades in Warrington. This work will improve performance for passengers and freight and help to play its part in Britain building back better from the Covid-19 pandemic.
“Now our attention turns to the early May bank holiday when more essential railway improvements will take place. Because of the amount of work being done, passengers are being urged to travel either side of the bank holiday on Friday 30 April and Tuesday 4 May.”
Gus Dunster, executive director of operations and safety at Avanti West Coast, said: “We would like to thank customers for their patience while Network Rail carried out upgrade works at Warrington Bank Quay over the Easter weekend. The works will help to make journeys more reliable for our customers on the West Coast Main Line as we look forward to welcoming them back in the near future.”
Chris Jackson, regional director at Northern, said: “The Great North Rail Project is making a huge difference for Northern customers and is delivering improved infrastructure that will provide better journeys for many years to come. The improvements in Warrington, alongside our own enhancements to trains and stations, will give our customers a better way to go.”
Andy Carter, MP for Warrington South, said: “My thanks to Network Rail for their work in delivering these improvements for local rail passengers across Warrington. The new structures over the station will improve the resilience of the local network and improve the overall passenger experience.
“Immediate improvements are welcome, but I am continuing to push for long-term investment through schemes like Northern Powerhouse Rail which will be a game changer for Warrington.”
Passengers in the North West are urged to check www.nationalrail.co.uk/westcoast before travelling so they know in advance whether their journeys will be affected by upgrade work on the early May Bank holiday.
Remaining work at Warrington Bank Quay station will cause minimal disruption to passengers and is due to be finished by the end of April 2021.
Photo credit: Network Rail
