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Birchwood railway station

Coordinates: 53°24′45″N 2°31′31″W / 53.4124°N 2.5253°W / 53.4124; -2.5253
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Birchwood
National Rail
Birchwood railway station, July 2018
General information
LocationBirchwood, Warrington
England
Coordinates53°24′45″N 2°31′31″W / 53.4124°N 2.5253°W / 53.4124; -2.5253
Grid referenceSJ651908
Managed byNorthern Trains
Platforms2
Other information
Station codeBWD
ClassificationDfT category D
History
OpenedJuly 1981
Passengers
2018/19Decrease 0.626 million
2019/20Decrease 0.600 million
2020/21Decrease 0.120 million
2021/22Increase 0.330 million
2022/23Increase 0.359 million
Notes
Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road
Birchwood station in August 1995

Birchwood railway station is a railway station serving the town of Birchwood, Cheshire, England. The station is 24+14 miles (39.0 km) east of Liverpool Lime Street and 13+14 miles (21.3 km) west of Manchester Piccadilly on the Liverpool-Manchester line.

The station is operated by Northern Trains and is on the southern route of the Liverpool–Manchester Line. It is staffed full-time (between 06:10 and 23:45 Mondays–Saturdays and 08:25 and 23:20 on Sundays).

Facilities

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There is sheltered seating on both platforms, with a ticket office with seating on the Manchester-bound platform. A footbridge connects the two platforms. Outside the station there is a bus stop and the station is close to the Birchwood shopping mall.

The ticket office is open until 22:00, though it does occasionally close during the day whilst staff carry out other duties. During the daytime there are three staff members on the station (station clerk, kiosk and a cleaner), and two of an evening (station clerk and a security guard). When the ticket office is closed there are two ticket machines in the station building on platform 1 and one in the waiting room on platform 2.[1] Train running information is provided by automated announcements, digital information screens and timetable posters. Step-free access is available via lifts on both platforms (commissioned in the autumn of 2014).[2]

Services

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The station sees a general frequency of three to four trains per hour in each direction. As of December 2022, services are provided by Northern Trains and TransPennine Express, with limited East Midlands Railway calls at certain points of the day.

Northern

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Most stopping trains originating from Liverpool Lime Street now terminate at Warrington Central.

TransPennine Express

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East Midlands Railway

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  • Two morning peak trains to Norwich
  • One train per day to Liverpool Lime Street

The TPE service replaces the former Northern Connect one to Manchester Airport, which was withdrawn in December 2022 as part of plans to alleviate congestion in the "Castlefield Corridor" section of route through the centre of Manchester. This has also seen the number of Northern local trains to Manchester Oxford Road cut from two per hour to one (though there is still a half-hourly service at peak times).

History

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The station was officially opened by British Rail Chairman Sir Peter Parker on 31 July 1981.[4] Constructed at a cost of £750,000, it was the result of cooperation between British Rail, Warrington New Town Development Corporation, Warrington Borough Council and local bus companies.[4] Bus interchange facilities were provided at the station, which served a developing residential and commercial area.[4] The initial service provision was fifty trains per day.[4]

References

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  1. ^ Birchwood station facilities National Rail Enquiries; Retrieved 12 December 2016
  2. ^ Easier access for passengers at Birchwood Network Rail Media Centre article; Retrieved 12 December 2016
  3. ^ Table 86 National Rail timetable, May 2023
  4. ^ a b c d Long, Charles, ed. (September 1981). "Official opening of Birchwood station". Modern Railways. 38 (396): 389.
[edit]
Preceding station   National Rail National Rail   Following station
Northern Trains
East Midlands Railway
Liverpool-Norwich
Peak Hours only
Northern Trains
Liverpool-Manchester Airport
Warrington Central   TransPennine Express
South TransPennine
  Irlam
    Manchester Oxford Road