Warrington Bank Quay  | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
.jpg) Warrington Bank Quay station in June 2014 | |||||
| General information | |||||
| Location | Warrington,Borough of Warrington England | ||||
| Grid reference | SJ599878 | ||||
| Managed by | Avanti West Coast | ||||
| Platforms | 4 | ||||
| Other information | |||||
| Station code | WBQ | ||||
| Classification | DfT category B | ||||
| History | |||||
| Original company | London and North Western Railway | ||||
| Pre-grouping | London and North Western Railway | ||||
| Post-grouping | London, Midland and Scottish Railway | ||||
| Key dates | |||||
| 16 November 1868 (1868-11-16) | Station opened (with platforms on two levels) | ||||
| 9 September 1963 | Low level platforms closed | ||||
| Passengers | |||||
| 2019/20 |  1.481 million | ||||
| Interchange |  0.339 million | ||||
| 2020/21 | 0.312 million | ||||
| Interchange | 67,072 | ||||
| 2021/22 | 0.959 million | ||||
| Interchange | 0.233 million | ||||
| 2022/23 | 1.126 million | ||||
| Interchange | 0.468 million | ||||
| 2023/24 | 1.241 million | ||||
| Interchange | 0.542 million | ||||
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Warrington Bank Quay is one of five railway stations serving the town ofWarrington inCheshire,England. It is a principal stop on theWest Coast Main Line betweenLondon Euston andGlasgow Central. The station is a north–south oriented main-line station on one side of the main shopping area, with the west–east orientedWarrington West andWarrington Central operating a more frequent service to the neighbouring cities ofLiverpool andManchester.
Cheshire Cat Buses are operated from the station intoWarrington Bus Interchange and in the opposite direction to the Centre Park business park, Stockton Heath and further south into Cheshire.[1]
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The station consists of two island platforms. The easternmost retains the 19th century buildings, with the western island's buildings dating from the 1950s. Passengers enter the station at street level through a functional modern entrance containing an information office and ticket office, and proceed through a subway, reaching the elevated platforms by stairs or a lift. There is a buffet on the eastern platform.
Platform 1 serves arrivals and departures toLiverpool Lime Street with this service terminating at the platform, and occasionally for North Wales services. Platform 2 is generally used for North Wales services, and southbound intercity services to Birmingham New Street and London Euston. Platform 3 serves northbound intercity trains to Edinburgh and Glasgow Central. Platform 4 for services from North Wales to Manchester. The platforms are notbidirectional, except that the slow line between the station and Winwick Junction, some2+1⁄2 miles (4 km) to the north. This allows northbound departures from platform 1. The present platform 4 was numbered 5 for many years, because there was to be a north-facing bay platform in the west island which was numbered 4, but this saw no passenger use after electrification in 1972 being removed later.
The station's best known landmark is the hugeUnileverdetergent manufacturing plant which stands overlooking the site.[2]
The station suffered from years of neglect and, because of this,Virgin Trains announced improvements to the station. In 2009, an extension to the existing car park and a new taxi rank were built, along with improvements to the platforms and a new ticket office and travel centre.[3][4] The new entrance hall is now complete, with a ticket office and a newsagents. The buffet on the London bound platforms has been modernised, however a first class lounge is yet to materialise.
Until 1965, 2 west-east orientedthrough platforms, 5 and 6(53°23′09″N2°36′08″W / 53.3857°N 2.6023°W /53.3857; -2.6023 (Bank Quay Low Level railway station)) were situated on what had been theSt Helens Railway lines which pass beneath the station and the north-southWest Coast Main Line. (The West Coast Main Line had been elevated to pass over the west to east line when the current station was opened in 1868). Although it was not the official title, this part of the station was referred to as Bank Quay Low Level.[5] There was also abay platform, 7 situated at the eastern end of the site. The line remains for freight use only[6] and there are no longer any passenger platforms on the low level station.
In theIntegrated Rail Plan for the North and Midlands the UK government proposed reinstating the Low Level station as part of a new connection to Liverpool fromHS2.[7]
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The station lies on the West Coast Main Line, operated byAvanti West Coast, with regular services toLondon,Birmingham, andScotland.[8][9] A regular regional express service operates between Manchester,Chester andNorth Wales operated byTransport for Wales Rail.[10] Northern operate one early morning service per day toEllesmere Port viaHelsby with returning evening service.[11] The regular electric local service to and from Liverpool Lime Street that ran up until spring 2020 no longer operates.
Normal weekday service consists of:
| Preceding station |  National Rail | Following station | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Runcorn East | Transport for Wales Rail Chester to Manchester Line | Earlestown | ||
| Runcorn East | Northern Ellesmere Port to Warrington Line Mondays-Saturdays only | Terminus | ||
| Wigan North Western | Avanti West Coast West Coast Main Line | London Euston | ||
| Crewe | ||||
| Rugby | ||||
| Chester | Northern Connect Chester - Leeds | Earlestown | ||
| Runcorn East | ||||
| Future services | ||||
| Liverpool Lime Street | TBA Northern Powerhouse Rail | Manchester Interchange | ||
| Liverpool Lime Street | TBA Northern Powerhouse Rail | Crewe | ||
| Historical railways | ||||
| Daresbury | Birkenhead Joint Railway | Terminus | ||
| Moore | London and North Western Railway Grand Junction Railway | Earlestown | ||
| Disused railways | ||||
| Sankey Bridges | St Helens Railway | Warrington Arpley | ||
