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Clifton railway station (Greater Manchester)

Coordinates: 53°31′20″N 2°18′51″W / 53.5223°N 2.3141°W / 53.5223; -2.3141
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(Redirected from Molyneux Junction)
For stations in other places called Clifton, see Clifton railway station (disambiguation).

Clifton
National Rail
The ramp leading to the northbound platform in 2023
General information
LocationClifton, Salford
England
Coordinates53°31′20″N 2°18′51″W / 53.5223°N 2.3141°W / 53.5223; -2.3141
Grid referenceSD793028
Managed byNorthern
Transit authorityTransport for Greater Manchester
Platforms2
Other information
Station codeCLI
ClassificationDfT category F2
History
Original companyEast Lancashire Railway
Pre-groupingLancashire and Yorkshire Railway
Post-groupingLondon, Midland and Scottish Railway
Key dates
June 1847Opened as Clifton Junction
6 May 1974Renamed Clifton
Passengers
2018/19Increase 282
2019/20Steady 282
2020/21Decrease 128
2021/22Increase 140
2022/23Increase 208
Notes
Passenger statistics from the Office of Rail and Road

Clifton railway station is a railway station in Clifton, Greater Manchester, England which was formerly called Clifton Junction. It lies on the Manchester–Preston line.

History

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The railway line between Salford and Bolton, the Manchester and Bolton Railway (M&BR), opened in 1838, but had no stations between Agecroft Bridge and Ringley.[1] In 1844, the Manchester, Bury and Rossendale Railway (MB&RR) was authorised to build a line from a junction with the M&BR at Clifton, to Rawtenstall. It opened to the public on 28 September 1846,[2] by which time the MB&RR had amalgamated with other companies to become the East Lancashire Railway,[3] and the M&BR had itself amalgamated with the Manchester and Leeds Railway;[4] the M&LR became the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway in 1847.[5]

A 1905 Railway Clearing House Junction Diagram showing (upper right) railways in the vicinity of Clifton

The Bury line ran northward from the junction, crossing the Irwell Valley on the Clifton Viaduct (known locally as the "13 arches"), to run on the opposite side of the valley from the Bolton line. A station at the junction, with two platforms for each route (Bolton or Bury), opened in June 1847, and was named Clifton Junction.[2][6]

Looking southbound from in between the (now heavily overgrown) former platforms that served Bury and Accrington.

The line to Bury closed in 1966 along with the platforms that served it, with the tracks being lifted in 1968.[7] The old Bury and Accrington platforms are still intact (though heavily overgrown) in the woodland that now occupies the site of the junction behind the modern station, and the viaduct remains a Grade II listed local landmark.

On 6 May 1974 the station was renamed Clifton,[6][8] (even though the area has become known as Clifton Junction), and in the 1990s the service was reduced to one train per day in each direction.

The closest station to Clifton Junction with a regular service is Swinton 1.25 miles (2.01 km) away on the line between Manchester and Wigan Wallgate via Atherton.

Local industry made good use of Clifton Junction railway station long before the advent of mass car ownership when three factories were established close by enabling employees and visitors access by train. The three factories were Magnesium Elektron Ltd, Chloride Batteries Ltd and Pilkington's Tiles Ltd.[citation needed]

Services

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The service at Clifton railway station is very limited in the current 2023 timetable (and has been since 1992),[9] with just one train calling in each direction between Stalybridge and Southport per day - southbound (at 08:36) in the morning peak and northbound (at 18:20) in the evening. In 2012, the station had only a small amount of services day in each direction (local services run by Northern); only 170 passengers were recorded as using the station in 2010–11. The single daily service each way was suspended between May 2015 and the December 2015 timetable change due to the ongoing modernisation work at Farnworth Tunnel, with a replacement bus provided instead. The station reopened on schedule on 14 December 2015.

Electric service commenced on Monday 11 February 2019, initially utilising Class 319 electric multiple units.[10]

There is no Sunday service.

References

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  1. ^ Marshall, John (1969). The Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway, volume 1. Newton Abbot: David & Charles. pp. 30–30. ISBN 0-7153-4352-1.
  2. ^ a b Marshall 1969, p. 110
  3. ^ Marshall 1969, p. 106
  4. ^ Marshall 1969, p. 33
  5. ^ Marshall 1969, p. 65
  6. ^ a b Butt, R.V.J. (1995). The Directory of Railway Stations. Yeovil: Patrick Stephens Ltd. p. 63. ISBN 1-85260-508-1. R508.
  7. ^ Disused Stations - Clifton JunctionDisused Stations; Retrieved 14 December 2015
  8. ^ Slater, J.N., ed. (July 1974). "Notes and News: Stations renamed by LMR". Railway Magazine. 120 (879). London: IPC Transport Press Ltd: 363. ISSN 0033-8923.
  9. ^ Disused Stations - Clifton JunctionDisused Stations; Retrieved 14 December 2015
  10. ^ McDonnell, Seamus (14 February 2019). "First electric trains are a 'new dawn' for Bolton commuters | The Bolton News". The Bolton News. Retrieved 11 May 2020.
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Clifton railway station.
Preceding station   National Rail National Rail   Following station
Northern Trains
Limited service
Disused railways
Dixon Fold
Line open, station closed 		  Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway
Manchester and Bolton Railway 		  Agecroft Bridge
Line open, station closed
Molyneux Brow
Line and station closed 		  Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway
East Lancashire Railway 		 
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