West Kirby railway station
Encyclopedia
West Kirby railway station is situated in the town of West Kirby
, Wirral, England
. It is situated at the end of one of the branches of the Wirral Line
, part of the Merseyrail
network.The beach can be reached easily from the station.
The station was originally built in 1878 as the terminus of the Wirral Railway
's route from Birkenhead Park
station. Through services via the Mersey Railway Tunnel to Liverpool
commenced in 1938, when the London Midland and Scottish Railway electrified the line.
Current service levels are every 15 minutes to Liverpool during Monday to Saturday daytime, and every 30 minutes at other times.
There is a central island platform between two terminus tracks, and two parallel sidings for out-of-use electric trains. The canopy over the platform was renewed in reinforced concrete at the time of the 1938 electrification, but the station building across the end of the tracks was left untouched from Victorian times, although in recent times much of its space has been rented out as retail units accessed from the public road rather than from the railway premises.
When the Open Golf Championship
was held at the Royal Liverpool Golf Club
(situated between West Kirby and Hoylake
) in July 2006, services terminated at Hoylake
station during the tournament. This was to allow competitors to cross the tracks from the practice course on one side to the championship course on the other. This caused some controversy locally, especially given the large increase in passengers during the championship.
Until 1964 there was an active freight depot on the east side of the station, occupying the triangular area between the electric lines station and the Birkenhead Joint station, mainly used to receive coal for domestic distribution. The area occupied by this freight depot was later used for the construction of The Concourse local authority building. The West Kirby goods depot was principally served by a daily goods train along the electric line from Birkenhead, which also served goods depots at Hoylake, Moreton, and the Cadbury's factory near Leasowe.
extended their line to West Kirby from Parkgate
; this now meant there was a direct route from Hooton
to West Kirby. The station was single platformed with a water tank at its southern end. The station closed to passengers in 1956 and completely closed in 1962. A principal traffic was scholars travelling from stations along the route to the secondary schools in West Kirby. In its final years the almost-unused line was employed for the training of diesel multiple unit crews operating from Birkenhead and Chester via Hooton. The route all the way to Hooton is now a footpath, known as The Wirral Way, which forms part of the Wirral Country Park
.
The station for the Hooton line at West Kirby lay to the east of the current station, along the alignment of what is now Orrysdale Road between Bridge Road and Grange Road, and was effectively a separate facility to the main station on the electric lines. There was a junction between the two underneath the Bridge Road overbridge, but very few train movements connected between the two, the only significant one being a once-daily through service, often just one or two coaches, which ran until 1939 from New Brighton via Bidston and this route to Hooton and Chester, where it was attached to a London Euston train.
West Kirby
West Kirby is a town on the north-west corner of the coast of the Wirral Peninsula, England, at the mouth of the River Dee across from the Point of Ayr in North Wales. To the north-east of the town lies Hoylake, with the suburbs of Grange and Newton to the east, and the village of Caldy to the...
, Wirral, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. It is situated at the end of one of the branches of the Wirral Line
Wirral Line
The Wirral Line is one of the two commuter railway lines operated by Merseyrail that are centred around Merseyside, England, the other being the Northern Line...
, part of the Merseyrail
Merseyrail
Merseyrail is a train operating company and commuter rail network in the United Kingdom, centred on Liverpool, Merseyside. The network is predominantly electric with diesel trains running on the City Line. Two City Line branches are currently being electrified on the overhead wire AC system with...
network.The beach can be reached easily from the station.
The station was originally built in 1878 as the terminus of the Wirral Railway
Wirral Railway
The Wirral Railway was incorporated in 1863 as the Hoylake Railway , with powers to build lines from Birkenhead to New Brighton, and to Parkgate on the western side of the Wirral Peninsula; the latter line was not built. Between 1872 and 1882 the HR was renamed twice, and extensions of the line...
's route from Birkenhead Park
Birkenhead Park railway station
Birkenhead Park railway station is situated in Birkenhead, Wirral, England. It lies on the Wirral Line 5 km west of Liverpool Lime Street on the Merseyrail network.- History :...
station. Through services via the Mersey Railway Tunnel to Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
commenced in 1938, when the London Midland and Scottish Railway electrified the line.
Current service levels are every 15 minutes to Liverpool during Monday to Saturday daytime, and every 30 minutes at other times.
There is a central island platform between two terminus tracks, and two parallel sidings for out-of-use electric trains. The canopy over the platform was renewed in reinforced concrete at the time of the 1938 electrification, but the station building across the end of the tracks was left untouched from Victorian times, although in recent times much of its space has been rented out as retail units accessed from the public road rather than from the railway premises.
When the Open Golf Championship
The Open Championship
The Open Championship, or simply The Open , is the oldest of the four major championships in professional golf. It is the only "major" held outside the USA and is administered by The R&A, which is the governing body of golf outside the USA and Mexico...
was held at the Royal Liverpool Golf Club
Royal Liverpool Golf Club, Hoylake
The Royal Liverpool Golf Club is a leading golf club in Merseyside in North West England. It was founded in 1869 on what was then the racecourse of the Liverpool Hunt Club, and received the "Royal" designation in 1871 due to the patronage of the Duke of Connaught of the day, who was one of Queen...
(situated between West Kirby and Hoylake
Hoylake
Hoylake is a seaside town within the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, on Merseyside, England. It is located at the north western corner of the Wirral Peninsula, near to the town of West Kirby and where the River Dee estuary meets the Irish Sea...
) in July 2006, services terminated at Hoylake
Hoylake railway station
Hoylake railway station serves the town of Hoylake, Wirral, England. It lies on the West Kirby branch of the Wirral Line, part of the Merseyrail network. It is in the art deco style with a circular clerestory over the booking hall and after the 1938 rebuild, became a Grade II Listed Building in 1988...
station during the tournament. This was to allow competitors to cross the tracks from the practice course on one side to the championship course on the other. This caused some controversy locally, especially given the large increase in passengers during the championship.
Until 1964 there was an active freight depot on the east side of the station, occupying the triangular area between the electric lines station and the Birkenhead Joint station, mainly used to receive coal for domestic distribution. The area occupied by this freight depot was later used for the construction of The Concourse local authority building. The West Kirby goods depot was principally served by a daily goods train along the electric line from Birkenhead, which also served goods depots at Hoylake, Moreton, and the Cadbury's factory near Leasowe.
Birkenhead Joint branch
In 1886, the Chester and Birkenhead RailwayChester and Birkenhead Railway
The Chester and Birkenhead Railway ran from Birkenhead to Chester. It opened on 23 September 1838. On the 22 July 1847 it merged with the Birkenhead, Lancaster and Cheshire Junction Railway to become the Birkenhead Railway.-Currently Working:...
extended their line to West Kirby from Parkgate
Parkgate, Cheshire
Parkgate is a village on the Wirral Peninsula, in the part that lies in the unitary authority of Cheshire West and Chester and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, in the North West of England...
; this now meant there was a direct route from Hooton
Hooton railway station
Hooton railway station is situated in the south of the Wirral Peninsula, Cheshire, England. It lies on the Wirral Line 15 km south west of Liverpool Lime Street on the Merseyrail network, and is near the junction of the branch line to Ellesmere Port from the Chester line.The station is...
to West Kirby. The station was single platformed with a water tank at its southern end. The station closed to passengers in 1956 and completely closed in 1962. A principal traffic was scholars travelling from stations along the route to the secondary schools in West Kirby. In its final years the almost-unused line was employed for the training of diesel multiple unit crews operating from Birkenhead and Chester via Hooton. The route all the way to Hooton is now a footpath, known as The Wirral Way, which forms part of the Wirral Country Park
Wirral Country Park
The Wirral Country Park is a country park on the Wirral Peninsula, England, lying both in the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral and the county of Cheshire...
.
The station for the Hooton line at West Kirby lay to the east of the current station, along the alignment of what is now Orrysdale Road between Bridge Road and Grange Road, and was effectively a separate facility to the main station on the electric lines. There was a junction between the two underneath the Bridge Road overbridge, but very few train movements connected between the two, the only significant one being a once-daily through service, often just one or two coaches, which ran until 1939 from New Brighton via Bidston and this route to Hooton and Chester, where it was attached to a London Euston train.
External links
- Station information from Merseyrail