Ellesmere Port to Warrington Line

Timings are from Ellesmere Port

The Ellesmere Port to Warrington Line operates between the towns of Ellesmere Port and Warrington in the north-west of England.

The line previously used to operate from Hooton to Helsby. This service was relatively frequent (every half hour until the late eighties), operating via Ellesmere Port. It was withdrawn after the line was electrified west of Ellesmere Port. Station signs at Ince and Elton railway station still display signage relating to services to/from Hooton.

Route

The route follows the Birkenhead Joint (LNWR & GWR) Ellesmere Port branch with stations at Stanlow and Thornton and Ince and Elton to the village and junction station at Helsby where it joins the Chester to Manchester Line through to Warrington Bank Quay railway station.

ervices

Northern Rail currently, (April 2008), operates a Department for Transport set minimum service of four trains daily in each direction between Ellesmere Port and Helsby of which two trains each way run to and from Warrington, one continues further to Liverpool Lime Street. This is known as a Parliamentary train Service.

The reason why these services are run at all is because rail transport is heavily regulated in the United Kingdom and it is therefore considerably cheaper for a train operating company to run a parliamentary service than it is to go through the full legal process of applying for a station and/or line to be permanently closed.

Future

Quinn Glass is located in Elton, and is currently undergoing expansion near the Ince & Elton railway station. Network Rail Route Strategy states that Quinn Glass is interested in additional passenger and freight services on this line. It is also thought that planning permission requires Quinn Glass to maximise upon existing public transport links. [cite web|url=http://www.chester.gov.uk/PDF/Planning-quinn-glass.pdf|title=Quinn Glass Planning Application|accessdate=2008-05-04] .

References