End to Greenfield disruption nears with work halfway through

The Transpennine Route Upgrade is celebrating the halfway mark at Stalybridge, as progress is made to bring passengers one step closer to fully electrified trains. 

The upgrade is disrupting services at Greenfield station.

The station has been without trains since Saturday, March 11, with passengers instead relying on replacement bus services.

ALSO READ: Oldham railway station to be without trains for 40 days.

It means a trip from Greenfield to Manchester Piccadilly has increased from a scheduled duration of 25 minutes by train to 43 minutes by bus – though some passengers posting on social media have complained of trip times of more than 90 minutes.

According to Network Rail, engineers in Stalybridge have been working around the clock to deliver the biggest piece of work of the programme so far over the last two weeks.

Work is taking place to upgrade Stalybridge (Image: Network Rail)

This includes a full junction remodelling, which will allow trains to move between different lines at higher speeds, as well as important signalling upgrades and works for future electrification. 

The work, which is set to be completed by Thursday, April 6, will see more than 2km (1.24 miles) of new track, 25 new signals, 54 new switches and crossing components (rail equipment which allows trains to move from one piece of track to another) and overhead line equipment installed.

The aim of the work is to increase the reliability and speed of trains passing through the area. 

Passengers from Greenfield station to Manchester are currently forced to take rail replacement bus services.

Work is taking place to upgrade the line (Image: Network Rail)

Hannah Lomas, industry programme director for the Transpennine Route Upgrade, said: “It’s fantastic to see the amount of progress that has been made over the last two weeks at Stalybridge.

"This package of work is the largest to date on the Transpennine Route Upgrade, so it’s a huge milestone for both the project and the programme as a whole. 

“I’d like to take this opportunity to thank passengers for bearing with us while we complete these major upgrades.

"We do appreciate that there’s no ideal time to close the railway, but we hope that our work so far highlights just a small part of the long-term benefits that the Transpennine Route Upgrade is set to bring to rail travel. 

“Diversionary routes and rail replacement buses will continue to keep passengers moving until the line re-opens on April 6, 2023, so in the meantime I’d encourage people to check before they travel with National Rail Enquiries or their train operator.”  

Greenfield station has been without trains due to the work at Stalybridge (Image: Jack Fifield, Newsquest)

Chris Nutton, major projects director for TransPennine Express, said: “It’s fantastic to see the work being carried out at Stalybridge as part of the TRU programme, bringing us one step closer to delivering a railway fit for the 21st Century. 

"I want to thank our customers for their cooperation during the work so far and to continue to check the latest changes to our services before they travel on our website.”