Local rail lines to be closed for 16 days this summer as major upgrades take place

Local railway lines will be closed for 16 days this summer as work improving the railway as part of the Transpennine Route Upgrade begins.

The work will take place east of Manchester Victoria station, closing the lines towards Rochdale and Stalybridge.

From 31 July to 15 August 2021, there will be no trains between Rochdale and Manchester Victoria, but there will be a bus replacement service in operation, calling at Castleton, Mills Hill and Moston.

The lines will reopen on Monday 16 August.

Despite the 16-day closure, direct train travel between Manchester and Leeds will still be possible but with trains departing/arriving via Manchester Piccadilly instead of Manchester Victoria station.

There will be alternative transport provided between Stalybridge and Manchester Victoria, calling via Ashton.

During the 16-day closure, hundreds of railway workers will be working day and night to renew key sections of track and upgrade several railway bridges to improve reliability.

The work forms part of the Transpennine Route Upgrade’s wider goal to deliver sought-after improvements along the full 76-mile Transpennine route – stretching from York to Manchester, via Leeds and Huddersfield.

The need to close the railway for 16-days is to provide enough time to refurbish and strengthen Dantzic Street underbridge in Manchester city centre, which has to be constructed from 38 sections due to surrounding constraints.

Once the bridges are reconstructed this will contribute to allowing for increased weight loading and creates the potential for a higher frequency of trains to run over them. The railway bridges that will be upgraded are Dantzic Street in Manchester city centre, Queens Road in Miles Platting, Bromley Street subway and Oldham Road.

Precise details of alternative train and bus timetables will be released later this year.

Additional railway upgrade work between Manchester Victoria and Stalybridge/Rochdale is also being planned for several weekends and bank holidays from late August through to early 2022.

The below dates and travel impact have been confirmed by Network Rail with other dates being finalised.

Sunday 22 August – This will mean all trains between Leeds and Manchester on the Transpennine route departing/arriving at Manchester Piccadilly only. There will also be some changes to morning train services between Rochdale and Manchester Victoria.

Sunday 5 September – This will mean all trains between Leeds and Manchester on the Transpennine route departing/arriving at Manchester Piccadilly only. There will also be some changes to morning train services between Rochdale and Manchester Victoria.

For more information, please visit the Network Rail website.