Railways in the North, Dark Clouds Looming

[ianhr]

Does this bode well, or not as may be the case, for the type of eventual rolling stock service provision to Blackburn via the Copy Pit line that will be offered ? What type of rolling stock are normally provided on the Wigan Wallgate to Kirkby line ?

I would have thought these adjustments are just so that they can make best use of the pending electrification. Trains from Kirby, Southport via Atherton & Blackburn will still be DMU and so it seems sensible to route them through Victoria towards Rochdale & beyond. Whereas trains from Preston/Blackpool, Wigan via Bolton, and Liverpool via Chat Moss should eventually be EMU diagrams and so can run via Victoria to Stalybridge & beyond.

 

[Darren R]

Does this bode well, or not as may be the case, for the type of eventual rolling stock service provision to Blackburn via the Copy Pit line that will be offered ? What type of rolling stock are normally provided on the Wigan Wallgate to Kirkby line ?

That was the first question I asked myself and for exactly the same reason! Once upon a time Kirkby services were frequently haunted by the spectres of wannabe buses, but I think they get more of a mix of rolling stock these days.

The new Todmorden services seem to be very complex diagrams (on Northern? Surely not! ), inter-working with services to almost everywhere from Huddersfield to Southport and Blackpool North - in fact a few of them start from Blackpool North Carriage Sidings. I'd be guessing the Toddy services (and Blackburn when they start) will most likely be a mixture of 150s and 156s. (Until the 319s take over! )