Ditton railway station
Ditton | |
---|---|
London & North Western Railway | |
Post-grouping | London, Midland and Scottish Railway London Midland Region of British Railways Railtrack |
Key dates | |
1 May 1871 | New station opened as Ditton Junction, replacing Ditton Mill |
7 May 1973 | Renamed (Ditton) |
29 May 1994 | Closed |
Ditton railway station, originally Ditton Junction, was a railway station which served the Ditton area of Widnes in Cheshire, England. It was located on Hale Road on the border between Ditton and Halebank.
History
The station opened in 1871 on the London-Liverpool line. It replaced an earlier station named Ditton Mill which was inconveniently located off the then new main line some 230 yards (210 m) to the east.
On 17 September 1912, 15 people were killed when the 17:30 train from Chester derailed while crossing from the fast to the slow line at speed.
The station was rebuilt between 1960-61[2] at a cost of £48,500[3] (equivalent to £1,148,500 in 2021).[4]
Ditton closed to passengers on 27 May 1994 and the station buildings were demolished in 2005.
Paul Simon
Ditton railway station is one of two stations where
Closure
The station was the first to be closed by
As of 2023 the platforms survive and can easily be seen from passing trains, and the site of the station buildings is visible from the road, marked by the more modern brickwork of the bridge parapet.
Future
Halton Borough Council has protected the site of the station as well as the Halton Curve from development prejudicial to their reuse as part of the rail network; the council notes that "there is an opportunity for the re-opening of this station, particularly with the possible increase in patronage from major industrial, commercial and housing developments in the area. It may be possible to use the station as a park and ride facility."[13] The alignment of the "Shell Green Route" which linked Ditton with Widnes South and Warrington is also protected.
Liverpool City Region Mayor, Steve Rotheram, stated in an interview in July 2017 that re-opening the station was one of the several options that had been outlined in the Liverpool City Region's Long Term Rail Strategy. The success of the plan depended heavily upon the re-opening of the Halton Curve.[14]
In February 2019 it was announced that Merseytravel and consultant company Arup had been conducting feasibility studies into the reopening of the station.[15] Initial estimates put the cost of reopening the station at an estimated £10 million.
Preceding station | Disused railways | Following station | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
Allerton | Weaver Junction and Liverpool Line
|
Runcorn | ||
Hale Bank
|
St Helens Railway
|
Widnes South | ||
London and North Western Railway | Runcorn |
References
- ^ Fields, Gilbert & Knight 1980, Photos 247 & 248
- ISBN 9780860936855.
- ^ "Station soon in full operation". Liverpool Echo. England. 17 November 1961. Retrieved 2 June 2019 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ UK Retail Price Index inflation figures are based on data from Clark, Gregory (2017). "The Annual RPI and Average Earnings for Britain, 1209 to Present (New Series)". MeasuringWorth. Retrieved 11 June 2022.
- ^ Zollo, Paul (1990). "Song Talk Interview". SongTalk Magazine. Retrieved 27 September 2012.
- Cheshire, England: C.C. Publishing. Retrieved 27 September 2012.
- ^ "Paul Simon and Garfunkel - England 64/65 tour : 1965". www.paul-simon.info. Retrieved 14 October 2021.
- ^ "Paul Simon's 1965 Concert & Tour History | Concert Archives". www.concertarchives.org. Retrieved 14 October 2021.
- ^ "Folklore: Remembering 'Folkscene' presenter Geoff Speed and his tales of Paul Simon". The Leader. Retrieved 14 October 2021.
- ^ GADFLY - Paul's fair deal for Scarborough Northern Echo (Darlington); 7 June 2006; MIKE AMOS; p. 11
- ^ Backtrack - BACKTRACK BRIEFS . . . Northern Echo (Darlington); 21 November 2008; Mike Amos; p. 11
- ^ Subterranea Britannica, "Ditton".
- ^ Halton Borough Council, Unitary Development Plan, Chapter 6, TP3. Archived 7 August 2007 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ McDougall, John (20 July 2017). "Steve Rotheram hints Ditton station reopening could hinge on Halton Curve". liverpoolecho. Retrieved 22 July 2017.
- ^ Brown, Faye (28 February 2019). "You may soon be able to catch a train from this disused railway station". liverpoolecho. Retrieved 28 February 2019.
Sources
- Fields, N; Gilbert, A C; Knight, N R (1980). Liverpool to Manchester into the Second Century. Manchester Transport Museum Society. ISBN 0 900857 19 6.