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Photos of Wigan
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Railways

16 Comments

Now and then
Now and then
Photo: Colin Harlow
Views: 4,222
Item #: 25917
Ashton road railway bridge and track taken 25/1/2015. The line to the left branches to the Works on Edge Green, the other track curves to the W.C.M.L. Below the same location taken in 1975 Courtesy of Alan Hart. A six car DMU leaves Haydock Junction with a race special.

Comment by: Alan on 26th January 2015 at 17:13

Did this line go past Lowton metals and under the M6 motorway? Great comparison.

Comment by: Garry on 26th January 2015 at 17:50

Alan Lowton is towards Leigh, wrong direction.

Comment by: gibo on 26th January 2015 at 18:45

Alan is correct the line did go past lowton metals

Comment by: winder on 26th January 2015 at 18:54

The line did go under the M6 in between Ashton and Haydock stations.
Good pics, Colin. I like the past and present ones.

Do you know if the line to the Edge Green works is still used?

Comment by: Colin Harlow on 26th January 2015 at 21:31

I'm not too sure if the lines still in use Winder, the rails are very rusty. Historically the line served Edge Green Colliery and in later years the Kelbit Works with bitumen and stone. The line from Haydock to the W.C.M.L. was used often with oil tanks to Heysham and scrap from Lowton Metals up to the mid 1980s.

Comment by: cullie on 27th January 2015 at 11:39

winder and colin harlow we still have to do a track patrol on this line every tues . has for the line this bit of track is blocked due to cable theft there not getting detection in warrington power box . this piece of track is token opperated . believe it or not there is a rail tour comming from crewe on march 2015 traveling over this bit of track right up to the stop block ends but i dout its gonna happen network rail wont put new cables in just so train buffs can travel over it

Comment by: winder on 27th January 2015 at 18:28

Thieves get everywhere these days.
Thanks for info, cullie

Comment by: Brian Thilwind on 27th January 2015 at 19:11

Lowton metals was in Haydock, the trains went past end of our garden all hours of the day and night near the level crossing, been no trains now for about 5 years last ones went to Kelbits, line still maintained though.

Comment by: Garry on 28th January 2015 at 08:22

Haydock station was where Tesco is now.

Comment by: Baldylocks on 28th January 2015 at 10:17

This line did serve Lowton Metals & Haydock oil terminal.
the link to kelbits was put back in circa 1987.

Comment by: Garry on 8th February 2015 at 09:51

How do you know the DMU IS leaving Haydock, Colin?
It's a single track.

Comment by: Colin Harlow on 8th February 2015 at 14:08

Because the driver is at the other end of the train, Garry!

Comment by: Anthony John Cook on 12th February 2015 at 17:40

OK, Boys,

Haydock Branch Junction leads from the Up Slow West Coast Main line onto the Chord Line, as it became known, controlled by the signal box at Golborne Station up to September 1972, when the line was
included onto the Middle Panel of Warrington Power Box.
The first pair of points on this line seen on the top photograph leads to Kelbits, as stated.
Just under the bridge a stop block was erected. (not sure of the date this occurred.)
Not too far past this bridge on the left hand side going towards Haydock was a ground frame, which allowed empty wagon trains to gain access to Golborne Colliery. (The fully loaded wagons were dealt with at a separate connection on the Down Slow line at the said Golborne Station.
Continuing on, we pass Haydock race course on the left, where there were spring operated points set for the old Station platform at Ashton-in-Makerfield. It was on this stretch of line, there was another Ground frame, controlled from the box at Golborne, to gain access to Lowton Metals.
Further on, another pair of spring operated points were set for the other platform in the station.
So a train going up to the oil terminal, would run through these points, but the spring would operate them after the passage of this train, returning them, ready for the train coming back, which would travel along this platform line.
At the Oil Terminal the tank train would go onto a stop block line, and propel into the terminal.
The line from Haydock Branch Junction to Ashton-in-Makerfield Station was worked under the Token Instrument Regulations, but the line up to the terminal, was worked under the One Train in Steam Regulations.

Any more information of this line can be found in my book:-
'Sojourn's of a Railway Signalman.)

Comment by: Joe Loyal - Warrington PSB on 25th February 2015 at 04:33

The Haydock Branch is effectively out of use. This is because of vandalism. People unknown have stolen the Token Machine so for trains to use the line we need a Pilotman. This is no big deal, but there are presently no trains that use this line. The train that used to use this line now goes to Preston Docks instead.

Comment by: Les on 7th July 2015 at 14:17

Edge Green line going to the site will be cleaned up in the near future

Comment by: John Lockett on 8th July 2015 at 15:50

Hi Alan
Yes they ran two race specials that day, think it was one from Liverpool and one from Rochdale, I was the Guard on the second train, I worked it from Wigan NW to Ashton and back, it was on the same day as the men's final at Wimbledon

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