Bury Bolton Street railway station

Infobox UK station
name=Bury Bolton Street
locale=Bury
borough=Greater Manchester
manager=East Lancashire Railway
platforms=4


caption = Entrance to station viewed from Bolton Street
start = 1846
Closed 1980
Reopened 1987

Bury Bolton Street railway station is a railway station in Bury, Greater Manchester.

History

It was formerly the main station serving the town, with links north to Ramsbottom, thence via Stubbins Junction either to Rawtenstall and Bacup or to Haslingden and Accrington; and south to Radcliffe Central, Whitefield, Prestwich and Manchester Victoria or via Radcliffe Bridge to Clifton Junction and the Bolton line. There was also a local branch to Holcombe Brook, and a curve to connect with Bury Knowsley Street station.

The station was opened by the East Lancashire Railway, in 1846, and is situated in a cutting with a low level yard on the East side, approached by an incline from Bolton Street and a flight of steps from Bank Street. To the North is the Bolton Street Tunnel.

In its original incarnation, it boasted the headquarters of the East Lancashire Railway, situated on the up platform adjacent to the yard. This fine neo-classical structure in the italianate style had the usual station accommodation on the ground floor and the company offices (including a boardroom on the upper floors. The headquarters building supported an overall train shed roof in the Paxton style, supported on the other side by a row of iron columns on an island platform. The West side had through lines and a rope-hauled incline giving access to the wagon works, now the site of Bury Leisure Centre.

The Manchester - Prestwich - Radcliffe Central - Bury line was electrified in 1916.

The station passed to the London Midland and Scottish Railway in 1923.

Subsequently, the station was operated by British Rail.

The street frontage burnt down after the war and was replaced with a new brick and concrete entrance and footbridge in 1954. The old headquarters building was demolished in the 1970s.

tation Information

The station was extensively remodelled by the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway (the company amalgamated with the ELR in 1859) who gave it its present form. There are four platforms, viz:-

Platform One. A bay platform at the South East End.

Platform Two. The up platform on the East side.

Platform Three. The down platform, one side of the island platform.

Platform Four. A unidirectional platform, one side of the island platform, adjacent to the Western retaining walls. (Which had a unique unidirectional signal mounted on a wall bracket.

The platforms were equipped with normal canopies, and a new entrance was created on Bolton Street, with street frontage buildings across the tracks accessing a footbridge.

A new platform building, incorporating a facade from the former Bury tram depot, has since been erected on the up platform, and the station is undergoing a comprehensive refurbishment and redevelopment plan. It is once again signalled, and the old Bury South box is back in operation.

The Original Services

Services to Accrington, Bacup & Clifton Junction were withdrawn in 1966, with the Rawtenstall trains following suit in 1972. That left only the link to Manchester Victoria which in turn was severed in 1980 with the opening of Bury Interchange. Bolton Street Station, with its original features, was rescued from demolition and placed in the care of the East Lancashire Railway, a preservation group. The line to Ramsbottom and Rawtenstall was re-opened as a heritage railway, under the name East Lancashire Railway in 1987 and has since been extended to Heywood. The line and station have since become a leading tourist attraction in the area.

Gallery

The Present Day Services

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References

*Lost Railways of Lancashire by Gordon Suggitt (ISBN 1-85306-801-2)