Four-week rail disruption 'latest blow' for commuters

A Liverpool councillor has said a planned four-week closure on a section of Merseyrail's Northern Line is "another blow" for commuters and football fans in the immediate local area.

Network Rail said it would be strengthening and waterproofing four tunnels from 11 October to 6 November, meaning no trains will run between Liverpool Central and Hunts Cross during that period.

Liberal Democrat councillor Richard Clein, who represents Cressington, has complained it is just the latest disruption residents in his ward have faced.

The company acknowledged there was "never an ideal time" to close the line, but said it was working "to minimise disruption... as much as possible".

Network Rail said the £3.5m project will see engineers strengthen and waterproof four tunnels that carry Northern Line services into Liverpool from the south.

The work is designed to prevent water entering the tunnels and affecting the electrified third rail, helping to reduce the risk of power failures, emergency speed restrictions and unplanned closures across the network.

As part of the project, new track feeder switches will also be installed. These will allow engineers to remotely isolate smaller sections of the railway, enabling faster repairs and ultimately reducing disruption for passengers.

Passengers who usually travel by train between Hunts Cross and Liverpool Central (those using South Parkway, Cressington, Aigburth, St Michaels or Brunswick stations) will be offered a rail replacement bus service over the course of the works.

Rail replacement buses will call at Moorfields, rather than Liverpool Central.

On Sundays only, the closed section of railway will extend from Hunts Cross to Sandhills, with a rail replacement service also operating in Sandhills.

While he understood the maintenance work was necessary, Richard Clein told BBC Radio Merseyside the month-long disruption was "yet another blow" to commuters who used Cressington station who have already seen disruption to their usual service three times in the past year.

Currently, the station platform at Cressington is too short to accommodate Merseyrail's new extra-capacity, eight-car trains, which are typically deployed during major events, such as Aintree or the recent Open golf championships at Royal Birkdale.

As a result, during The Open in July, services to Cressington were cut from every 15 minutes to every 40 minutes - because the extra capacity trains were unable to stop there.

Clein said it had taken weeks for him to get confirmation of Network Rail's plans.

"This is going to cause disruption to people right across Liverpool," he said.

"It's just another blow for people living in Cressington, who have already suffered a reduced timetable and poor service."

The councillor maintained the work should be carried out in phases.

Merseyrail has tested larger vehicles stopping at Cressington station in recent months, but trackside beacons, which communicate with the trains to enable doors in the rear carriages to remain closed, are still not working correctly.

Clein said he hoped the issue would be resolved before the start of the football season.

A spokesperson for Network Rail said: "We know that there is never an ideal time to close the railway", but stressed the closure was essential in order to carry out the work safely.

"Ahead of the work we have been working closely with Merseyrail to minimise disruption for people during the project as much as possible."

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