Wigan Wallgate railway station

Wigan Wallgate railway station is one of two railway stations serving the town centre of Wigan in Greater Manchester, England. The station serves two routes, the Manchester-Southport Line and the Manchester-Kirkby Line. It is 16 miles north-west of Manchester Victoria (distance via Atherton). The station is managed by Northern Trains, who operate all trains serving it.

Wigan's other main station is Wigan North Western, which is about 100 m away, on the opposite side of the street named Wallgate.

Description
There are three platforms, two through platforms and one bay platform for trains departing towards Southport or Kirkby. Platforms are below street level and reached via a flight of stairs from the street level concourse which contains a ticket office and a newsagent. However, a goods lift has been modified for passenger use to ensure step-free access to the platform.

The ticket office is staffed from 06:00 to 21:00 Monday to Saturday and from 08:00 to 20:00 on Sundays. Automated ticket barriers are in operation. Train running information is provided via digital display screens, timetable posters and automated announcements. Toilets and a waiting room are available at platform level.

History
There have been three Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway (L&YR) stations on their lines through Wigan over the years.

The original L&YR station at Wigan was opened on 20 November 1848 when the L&YR opened the line between Liverpool Great Howard Street and Lostock Junction (to the west of Bolton on the Manchester to Preston Line). The station was located east of the current station closer to the London & North Western Railway (L&NWR) station. Its possible location can be seen, although unmarked, on the 1849 OS six-inch map immediately to the south-west of the line and east of Wallgate (the road). This station was described by the press at the time as a 'hovel'.

On 9 April 1855 the L&YR opened a line between Wigan and Southport London Street. Following this on 26 May 1860 Wigan's L&YR station was relocated to a larger station positioned slightly west of where Wallgate station is today. The station main access was from Dorning Street to the north, with another access along a lane from Wallgate. The station consisted of two platforms joined by a wide curved passageway forming a bridge over the running lines.

The L&YR introduced a passenger service on 14 September 1868 between Wigan L&YR station and Chorley, utilising the route from Hindley to Blackrod which had opened for freight traffic on 15 July 1868. On 1 December 1869, the Chorley trains were extended to Blackburn. The London & North Western Railway (L&NWR) ran a competing service from Wigan L&NWR via Boar's Head, which shared the same route from Adlington onwards to Blackburn.

On 1 October 1888, the L&YR line from Atherton to Hindley opened, this was the last section of a direct route between Wigan and Manchester Victoria that avoided the bottleneck of traffic around Bolton. The L&YR then introduced fast, regular trains between Manchester Victoria and Liverpool Exchange, in direct competition with the L&NWR which used a more direct route between Manchester Exchange and Liverpool Lime Street.

Journey times between Manchester and Liverpool where further improved when a bypass line opened on 1 June 1889 between Hindley and Pemberton, passing to the south of Wigan. This allowed a faster journey for the L&YR's Manchester – Liverpool expresses by avoiding Wigan station. Express trains from Liverpool continued to serve Wigan L&YR on the route to Bolton Trinity Street, Rochdale and West Yorkshire.

From around 1890 the L&YR was criticised by Wigan Corporation regarding the standard of its station and poor facilities, this led to it being replaced by the current station which opened on 2 February 1896. The new station partially overlapped the previous one but had new buildings facing directly onto Wallgate.

After the grouping of railways following World War 1, both the L&YR and the L&NWR came under the auspices of the London, Midland & Scottish Railway and that meant there were now two stations called Wigan, they were both renamed on 2 June 1924, this station becoming Wigan Wallgate, the L&NWR station becoming Wigan North Western.

Passenger trains between Wigan Wallgate, Chorley and Blackburn via Hindley were withdrawn on 4 January 1960.

Following the railways 1955 Modernisation Plan steam traction was being phased out and by 1968 most services through Wigan Wallgate had been converted to diesel multiple unit (DMU) operation. The steam loco depot just west of Wallgate had closed in April 1964 and the sidings converted for stabling of DMUs. The 1965 British Rail (London Midland) timetable still shows express trains (Liverpool Exchange to Yorkshire and beyond) using or bypassing Wigan Wallgate.

The direct line from Hindley to Pemberton was closed on 14 July 1969 and all Manchester to Liverpool Exchange trains were routed through Wallgate.

The line from Bolton to Rochdale via Bury was closed on 5 October 1970. Trains from Liverpool now generally terminated at Bolton. Southport trains provided the main service to and from Manchester Victoria.

On 30 April 1977, the former L&YR terminus at Liverpool Exchange was closed. Trains were re-routed onto a new underground line beneath Liverpool city centre to Moorfields and Liverpool Central. Since diesel multiple units could not operate in the tunnels, trains from the Wigan line initially terminated at Sandhills (the last surface station), with passengers transferring to or from electric trains on the Southport or Ormskirk lines for the short trip into Liverpool city centre.

During the early and mid-1970s, the frequency of British Rail's trains from Wigan Wallgate was reduced. Services operated at irregular intervals, those from the Liverpool line ran only as far as Wigan or Bolton and there were no off-peak trains on the Atherton line. In May 1977, the train service was significantly improved under the financial sponsorship of Greater Manchester PTE. GMPTE subsidised British Rail to operate a regular interval timetable throughout the day, including stopping trains via the Atherton line. The improved frequency resulted in an increase in off-peak passenger numbers.

The trains to Liverpool (which had terminated at Sandhills following the opening of the Merseyrail link to Liverpool Central) were cut back to Kirkby on 12 May 1977. This happened when Merseyrail completed electrification of the western section of line between Liverpool and Kirkby. The diesel trains from Wigan were scheduled to meet an electric train from Liverpool at Kirkby and passengers transfer along the same platform to complete their journeys. This arrangement continued at Kirkby until October 2023 when the electrification scheme was extended to a new Headbolt Lane station where the arrangement was repeated.

The Victorian-era buildings on the station platform at Wallgate were demolished in 1978 and new structures erected. The street-level building remained largely unscathed.

In 1988 the availability of destinations from the station was improved by the opening of the Windsor Link Line in Salford, this enabled trains from Wigan to access Manchester Oxford Road and Manchester Piccadilly stations.

A major refurbishment of infrastructure was completed in October 2004. The £12 million project involved a complete renewal of the track and signalling at Wallgate station and the adjacent carriage sidings. The LMS-era colour light signalling was replaced with a modern electronic control system.

During Summer 2012, the ticket office was rebuilt and refurbished.

Passenger
All passenger train services are provided by Northern Trains and operated by, and  DMUs, and  BMUs. DMUs are unable to use this station because the body-side steps under the doors foul the platform coping stones here. During Monday to Saturday daytimes, this is the regular service pattern, however due to the Preston to Manchester electrification works during the 2015 summer timetable, there was an amended timetable throughout this period. There were no train services between Bolton and any Manchester station on Saturdays and Sundays between 2 May to 13 December, trains were routed via Walkden.

Monday to Saturday:
 * 1 train per hour (tph) Manchester Oxford Road via Bolton
 * 1 train per hour (tph) Stalybridge via Bolton and Manchester Victoria
 * 1 train per hour (tph) Blackburn via Atherton and Manchester Victoria
 * 1 train per hour (tph) Leeds via Atherton and Manchester Victoria
 * 2 trains per hour (tph) Southport
 * 1 train per hour (tph) to Headbolt Lane

Sunday: There is no Headbolt Lane service on Sundays.
 * 1 train per hour (tph) Blackburn via Atherton and Manchester Victoria
 * 1 train per hour (tph) Southport

From 14 December 2015, the weekday & Saturday timetable reverted to that used prior to the Farnworth Tunnel blockade. There are 3 tph via Bolton toward Manchester (2 to Victoria and 1 to Manchester Airport via Piccadilly) and 2tph via Walkden (both to Victoria). One of the former continues to Stalybridge and Huddersfield and one of the latter to Todmorden and Blackburn. Two per hour run westwards to Southport and one to Kirkby, whilst two others terminate here. In the evenings there are hourly services to the Airport via Bolton, to Southport and to Victoria via Atherton. The Sunday service pattern is broadly similar, but trains to Piccadilly run onward to Stockport, then either to Hazel Grove or Chester via Altrincham (alternate hours).

Previously there was no Sunday service on the Atherton line, this changed in May 2010 when a 12-month trial of an hourly Sunday service began between Wallgate and Manchester Victoria via Atherton (after Greater Manchester PTA agreed a funding package with train operator Northern Rail in December 2009 ). Transport for Greater Manchester made the Sunday service a requirement of the Northern refranchising from April 2016.

The timetable underwent a further major change with the summer 2018 version introduced on 20 May. Trains via Bolton from here have been withdrawn (save for a very limited morning weekday peak service to Manchester Piccadilly and Alderley Edge) - these now run to/from neighbouring Wigan North Western (though connections are available at Hindley). There are now 3tph to Manchester Victoria, all of which run via Atherton. These then continue to either Stalybridge, Blackburn or Leeds (the latter pair via Rochdale). The westbound service continues to Southport and Kirkby as before. On Sundays, there are two trains to Manchester per hour and one to Southport.

The loss of Bolton service proved unpopular with many regular users of the line and so Northern (Arriva Rail North) agreed to modify the timetable so that the current service to Wigan N.W. from both Manchester stations will be diverted to run to Wallgate and onward to Southport from the December 2019 timetable update. Services from Leeds and Blackburn via Atherton will henceforth terminate/start here (except on Sundays, when the service runs via Atherton to Blackburn).

Changes instituted as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic since the spring of 2020 have seen the timetable altered once again, with the Calder Valley service from Leeds via Dewsbury and Walkden routed back to nearby North Western through the day. Just a small number of peak period services on this route serve Wallgate in the weekday peaks. There is still an hourly service to/from Blackburn via Todmorden (continuing through to Kirkby in the daytime) from here during the day and in the evening.

The Wigan North Western to Leeds services have been moved back to Wigan Wallgate in the December 2022 timetable.

Freight
There was a limited freight service through Wigan Wallgate during the early 2000s, operated by EWS running to Knowsley Freight Terminal on the Kirkby line - these were suspended from 2006 onwards. Most freight services through Wigan run through nearby Wigan North Western on the West Coast Main Line. As of June 2016, freight service to Knowsley Freight Terminal has been reinstated which uses Wallgate instead of Wigan North Western, where most freight operates. The new service runs to/from Teesside 6 days per week.