Bad weather and equipment failure delays Blackpool North reopening
A combination of bad weather, equipment failures and a road traffic accident has forced Network Rail to delay reopening the Preston-Blackpool North railway from March 26 to April 16. The route is being electrified and resignalled ahead of the May timetable change.
Strong winds earlier this year hindered the ability of engineers to run overhead wiring trains, compounded by a computer failure on the train for which a specialist part needed to be ordered. Cold weather in March caused some shifts to be stood down entirely, while a road traffic accident involving a piece of plant used to install overhead catenary also caused delays.
NR spokesman Jonathan Cooke says the extended blockade will not affect the introduction of electric trains from May 2018, but will give the project team more time to recover the delays. As this issue of RAIL went to press, the last overhead line electrification stanchion foundation had been completed.
After the route opens on April 16, extended overnight closures will be used to complete the electrification and signalling works. Station finishing works such as the installation of lifts at Kirkham & Wesham will also be concluded.
With the extended closure covering the busy Easter period in Blackpool, trains from Preston to Blackpool South will be strengthened to four coaches, while the rail replacement bus service serving Blackpool North will continue to run.
The route upgrade has involved rebuilding 11 bridges, remodelling of 11 platforms, renewal of 6.83 miles of track, installation of 84 new signals and upgrading drainage. Blackpool depot has been reconfigured to maintain electric trains.
NR Senior Sponsor Andrew Morgan said: “While we’ve made fantastic progress in upgrading the line over the past six months, the recent bad weather and unexpected maintenance of critical machinery has hampered us slotting in final pieces of this important jigsaw, at one of the busiest times of the closure. The additional line closure will help us claw back time.”