Stockport rail passengers urged to check before travelling over Easter

Rail passengers travelling in and around Stockport over the Easter bank holiday weekend are being urged to plan their journeys as work begins on replacing the Greek Street bridge over the West Coast Mainline.

Preparation for the almost £20 million project to rebuild the Greek Street bridge over the Manchester branch of the main railway line between London and the North-west begins on Saturday 19th April, with no trains running through Stockport from 19th to 21st April. Some services will be diverted, while others will be replaced with buses. The Greek Street roundabout also remains closed to traffic until next year.

The Easter Bank Holiday weekend has been carefully chosen as the best time to carry out major engineering work. The four-day bank holiday gives engineers longer to access the track without disturbing most commuters on the network. 

Phil James, Network Rail’s North West route director, said:

“I understand that our work over Easter will inconvenience people, and I am sorry for that. Many factors go into planning when we carry important work like this, and, unfortunately, we cannot complete the work we need to do to improve the railway and keep passengers safe without causing some disruption.

“I urge passengers to check National Rail Enquiries or with their train operator to understand exactly what this portfolio of railway upgrades means for their specific journey. I’d like to thank everyone for their patience as we work to deliver a better railway in the North West.”

Elsewhere in the region, Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) will be delivering improvements at Salford Central to make the station more accessible, with no trains running between Manchester Victoria and Salford Crescent. Signalling upgrades on the West Coast Mainline between Carlisle and Carstairs will also see bus replacement services running between Carlisle and Glasgow, Dumfries and Edinburgh between Saturday 19th – Monday 21th April.

Further afield, London’s Euston station at the terminus of the West Coast Main Line will be closed from 19th to 21st April, with no trains running between Euston and Milton Keynes while major engineering works take place. A reduced timetable will also be in place on Friday 18th April.