Southport and Cheshire Lines Extension Railway

The Southport & Cheshire Lines Extension Railway was an early British railway company operating in the then county of Lancashire. It was constructed to link the Cheshire Lines Committee railway at Aintree to Southport. It operated from 1884 to 1952.

Southport and Cheshire
Lines Extension Railway
Overview
LocaleLancashire
Merseyside
Technical
Track gauge4 ft 8+12 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
Route map

Aintree Central
Aintree
Old Roan
Sefton and Maghull
Lydiate
Altcar and Hillhouse
Barton
Mossbridge
Freshfield
Woodvale
Ainsdale
Ainsdale Beach
Birkdale Palace
Southport Lord Street

History

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Southport and Cheshire Lines Extension Railway Act 1881
Act of Parliament
 
Citation44 & 45 Vict. c. cxciii
Dates
Royal assent11 August 1881
Text of statute as originally enacted
Southport and Cheshire Lines Extension Railway Act 1882
Act of Parliament
 
Citation45 & 46 Vict. c. cclxi
Dates
Royal assent18 August 1882
Text of statute as originally enacted

The Southport & Cheshire Lines Extension Railway was authorised by two acts of Parliament, the Southport and Cheshire Lines Extension Railway Act 1881 (44 & 45 Vict. c. cxciii) of 11 August 1881 and the Southport and Cheshire Lines Extension Railway Act 1882 (45 & 46 Vict. c. cclxi) of 18 August 1882, the first authorising the line as far as Birkdale and the second the remaining section to Southport Lord Street.[1] It was promoted by the Cheshire Lines Committee (CLC) and was a natural extension of their North Liverpool Extension Line to Southport.[2][3]

Southport and Cheshire Lines Extension Railway Act 1885
Act of Parliament
 
Long titleAn Act to empower the Southport and Cheshire Lines Extension Railway Company to raise further Money; to confirm Agreements with reference to the working of their Railway by the Cheshire Lines Committee; and for other purposes.
Citation48 & 49 Vict. c. liii
Dates
Royal assent25 June 1885
Text of statute as originally enacted
Southport and Cheshire Lines Extension Railway Act 1889
Act of Parliament
 
Citation52 & 53 Vict. c. lxx
Dates
Royal assent9 July 1889
Text of statute as originally enacted
Southport and Cheshire Lines Extension Railway Act 1892
Act of Parliament
 
Long titleAn Act to confer further powers on the Southport and Cheshire Lines Extension Railway Company and for other purposes.
Citation55 & 56 Vict. c. xcv
Dates
Royal assent20 June 1892
Text of statute as originally enacted

The 14 miles 3 chains (22.6 km) line was built as a double track railway opening on 1 September 1884. The line was worked by the CLC under arrangements made in its acts of Parliament, these acts were ratified and amended by the Southport and Cheshire Lines Extension Railway Act 1889 (52 & 53 Vict. c. lxx) to allow working with other companies.[4]

The railway remained independent until nationalisation in 1948.[4]

Route

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Closure

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Passenger services ended 7 January 1952 and goods six months later.[4] The line remained in intermittent use from Aintree to Altcar and Hillhouse to provide access to private sidings until May 1960, when the line was finally lifted.

The route today

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The trackbed forms part of National Cycle Network Route 62, the Trans Pennine Trail. From Woodvale northwards the trail is joined by the Southport Coastal Road.

In January 2019, the Campaign for Better Transport released a report identifying the line which was listed as Priority 2 for reopening. Priority 2 is for those lines which require further development or a change in circumstances (such as housing developments).[5]

 
The Trans-Pennine Trail at Maghull
 
Cycle Path
 
Trans-Pennine Trail
 
Cheshire Lines path, near Lydiate
 
Cheshire Lines Cycle-way

References

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Footnotes
  1. ^ Griffiths & Goode 1978, pp. 17 & 53.
  2. ^ Bolger 1984, pp. 5–9.
  3. ^ Dow 1962, pp. 140–2.
  4. ^ a b c Awdry 1990, p. 238.
  5. ^ [1] p.42
Sources
  • Awdry, Christopher (1990). Encyclopaedia of British Railway Companies. Sparkford: Patrick Stephens Ltd. ISBN 1-8526-0049-7. OCLC 19514063. CN 8983.
  • Bolger, Paul (1984). An Illustrated History of the Cheshire Lines Committee. Merseyside: Heyday Publishing Company. ISBN 0-947562-00-1.
  • Dow, George (1962). Great Central, Volume Two: Dominion of Watkin, 1864–1899. Shepperton: Ian Allan. ISBN 0-7110-1469-8.
  • Griffiths, R. Prys; Goode, C.T. (1978). The Cheshire Lines Railway (Revised edition (1947) with additional notes ed.). St Albans: The Oakwood Press.
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