Warning to passengers as rail improvement works planned

Rail passengers are being urged to check before they travel this weekend as work on 'essential upgrades' is taking place on part of the network. 

Journeys will change on Sunday (27 September) as improvement works are carried out on a busy section of track in the Ashburys area. 

This includes work on points (the equipment which allows trains to change tracks), maintaining the 25,000 volt system which power trains, upgrades to the track foundation stones known as ballast, and improving track side drainage at Hattersley station to reduce the risk of flooding. 

As a result, there will be no train services running on Sunday on the Hadfield/Glossop to Manchester Piccadilly line. 

Instead, a bus replacement service will be in operation. 

The engineering works between Manchester Piccadilly and Guide Bridge will also see Northern's Sheffield stopping services operating on diversion and not calling at Reddish North, Brinnington, Bredbury, Romiley, Marple and New Mills Central. A rail replacement bus will operate between Manchester Piccadilly and Chinley, calling at all of these stations.

Meanwhile, TransPennine Express say they will also be running an amended timetable between Manchester Piccadilly and Huddersfield/Hull. 

Passengers are urged to check www.nationalrail.co.uk to see how their journeys will be impacted.

The work is part of a £1.8 million 'Great North Rail Project' being made to improve the reliability of future journeys on a busy section of railway at Ashburys to the east of the city of Manchester. 

Adam Checkley, senior programme manager for Network Rail, said: "This essential work as part of the Great North Rail Project focuses on one of the busiest sections of railway in the North West. Because it is used by passenger and freight services 24 hours a day, getting access to do vital maintenance is difficult. So much so we need to close the railway for an entire day to get everything we need to done.

"We try to carry out work like this when the railway is at its quietest and I’d like to thank people in advance for their patience. I’d urge them to allow extra time for their journeys this Sunday and check National Rail Enquiries or with their train operator before travelling.”

Chris Jackson, regional director at Northern, said: “This work will see significant changes to our timetables in the area this Sunday and I’m calling on all our customers to plan ahead and check carefully before travel.

“Our routes to Dinting and Hadfield will be particularly affected and customers should allow additional time for journeys as buses will replace trains. The updated timetables can be found on our website www.northernrailway.co.uk.”

Kathryn O’Brien, customer experience director for TransPennine Express, said: “This work will mean changes to our services this Sunday between Manchester Piccadilly and Huddersfield/Hull and we will be running an amended timetable.

“Our local services between Huddersfield and Manchester Piccadilly will instead terminate at Manchester Victoria while our Hull to Manchester trains will only operate as far as Leeds. We would urge customers to plan ahead and check before they travel at: www.tpexpress.co.uk/travel-updates/changes-to-train-times.”