Runcorn railway station

Runcorn
Location
Place	Runcorn
Local authority	Borough of Halton
Grid reference	SJ508826
Operations
Station code	RUN
Managed by	Virgin Trains
Number of platforms	2
DfT category	C1
Live arrivals/departures, station information and onward connections from National Rail Enquiries
Annual rail passenger usage*
2004/05	0.316 million
2005/06	0.370 million
2006/07	0.430 million
2007/08	0.442 million
2008/09	0.461 million
2009/10	0.535 million
2010/11	0.620 million
2011/12	0.661 million
2012/13	0.679 million
2013/14	0.706 million
History
Key dates	Opened 1 April 1869
Original company	London and North Western Railway
Pre-grouping	London and North Western Railway
Post-grouping	London, Midland and Scottish Railway
1 April 1869	Station opened
National Rail – UK railway stations
* Annual estimated passenger usage based on sales of tickets in stated financial year(s) which end or originate at Runcorn from Office of Rail and Road statistics. Methodology may vary year on year.
UK Railways portal

Runcorn railway station is in the town of Runcorn in the unitary authority of Halton in the north west of England. The station lies on the Liverpool branch of the West Coast Main Line between Weaver Junction and Liverpool South Parkway and is managed by Virgin Trains.

History

The station is located a short distance south of the Runcorn Railway Bridge over the River Mersey on a section of line opened by the London and North Western Railway to create a more direct route between Liverpool and Crewe. The station opened on 1 April 1869.^[1]

Facilities

The station has a shop and snack bar in the ticket hall. Lifts are available to allow passengers to cross between the platform. A car park (charges apply) and taxi rank are also available, and bus stops for services to other parts of Runcorn and also to Widnes.^[2]

For customers travelling with first class tickets and passes, a designated first class lounge is provided.^[3]

The station normally has a staffed ticket office. In addition, self-service ticket vending machines are available, allowing passengers to purchase tickets or collect prebooked tickets, for example, through a website or telesales.

Services

Regular

There is an hourly service between Liverpool Lime Street and London Euston operated by Virgin Trains, and two services per hour between Liverpool, Crewe and Birmingham New Street operated by London Midland. Services are less frequent in the evenings and on Sundays.

Irregular

Runcorn is the northern terminus for the so-called parliamentary train service non-stop from Chester. This train, operated by Northern, runs once a week on summer Saturdays only to satisfy the minimum requirement to operate a passenger service over the Halton Curve. There is no return journey to Chester because of the removal of the southbound line & associated pointwork at each end that allowed trains to proceed toward Frodsham, so this train runs as empty-stock to Liverpool Lime Street ready for normal service. On several occasions since 2010, this service has been extended, as a passenger service, to Liverpool South Parkway, calling additionally at Helsby, Frodsham and Runcorn, or calling at Runcorn only.^[4][5]

Gallery

• 

  Virgin Pendolinos wait at the station

• 

  Along platform 2

• 

  The main station building

• 

  The signal box situated at the southern end of platform 2

See also

• Runcorn signal box
• Runcorn East railway station

References

1. Butt, R.V.J. (1995). The Directory of Railway Stations. Yeovil: Patrick Stephens Ltd. p. 201. ISBN 1-85260-508-1. R508.
2. "Runcorn > Station information". London Midland. Retrieved 27 August 2012.
3. "Runcorn (RUN)". National Rail. Retrieved 5 January 2015.
4. "Parliamentary train service extended to Liverpool South Parkway". Merseytravel. 11 June 2010. Archived from the original on 20 August 2012. Retrieved 27 August 2012.
5. "Frodsham & Helsby residents flock to see ‘ghost train’". The Chester Chronicle (Trinity Mirror Merseyside). 26 July 2012. Retrieved 27 August 2012.

External links

• Train times and station information for Runcorn railway station from National Rail

Coordinates: 53°20′20″N 2°44′20″W / 53.339°N 2.739°W