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Mid-Cheshire line
The Mid-Cheshire line is a railway line in the north-west of England that runs from Chester to Edgeley Junction in Stockport; it connects Chester with Manchester Piccadilly, via Knutsford. After Chester Northgate closed in 1969, the section between Mickle Trafford Junction and Chester was used for freight trains only until it closed in 1992; from Mickle Trafford, passenger trains use the Chester–Warrington line to Chester General instead. The route taken by passenger trains has changed over the years and now differs considerably from the original. Between 2001 and 2014, passenger journeys on the line increased to over 1.7 million per year. A near doubling of the passenger service was expected to occur from December 2018, however this did not materialise.
The Mid-Cheshire line has its origins in railways promoted by three separate railway companies in the 19th century. The Cheshire Midland Railway was opened to passengers between Altrincham and Knutsford on 12 May 1862, then completed to Northwich on 1 January 1863. The West Cheshire Railway opened from Northwich to West Cheshire Junction in 1869. This railway was extended from Mouldsworth to a new terminus at Chester Northgate in 1874.
The line from Altrincham to Manchester was the Manchester, South Junction and Altrincham Railway (MSJAR), opened on 20 July 1849 and jointly owned by the London and North Western Railway and the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway (MSLR, later the Great Central Railway). The line from Chester to Altrincham was vested in the Cheshire Lines Committee (CLC), a joint committee regulated by the Great Northern Railway (GNR), MSLR and the Midland Railway (MR). This committee became an independent company after 1867 and survived the 1923 Grouping intact.
Services were operated by the CLC until nationalisation on 1 January 1948, when the line became part of British Railways London Midland Region. Between 1880 and 1969, CLC trains from Chester via Altrincham terminated at Manchester Central.
The junction with the Sandbach branch became a triangular junction in 1957, with the addition of the single-line connection from Sandbach towards Chester.
Before the Beeching closures in the 1960s, there were branch lines with services from the Mid-Cheshire line (see also the Winsford and Over branch). Beeching had no plans to close part or all of the Mid-Cheshire line, although in his proposed second phase of closures there were plans to close the line between Chester and Warrington Bank Quay, which would have increased the number of passengers using the Mid-Cheshire line. Although those proposed closures never went ahead, the original termini at Chester and Manchester were closed in 1969 and services were re-routed to Chester General, via a new junction at Mickle Trafford, and Manchester Oxford Road.
The route was double tracked between Chester and Altrincham, although the section between Mickle Trafford and Mouldsworth was reduced to single track after Chester Northgate station closed in 1969. For many years, the line had the reputation of being one of the busiest double-track routes in the UK.
CLC trains from Manchester to Chester departed from Manchester Central and joined the MSJ&A tracks at Old Trafford, sharing the MSJ&A line as far as Altrincham. These trains usually ran "express", some non-stop, with others calling only at Sale. The frequency of trains over this section led to a large section of the MSJ&A route between Manchester and Altrincham being quadrupled, and the whole route (from Manchester to the former Bowdon railway station, which was used as carriage sidings and repair depot) was electrified at 1500 volts DC in 1931. Local services between Manchester London Road and Altrincham were then provided by electric multiple unit trains. From 1960, Manchester Oxford Road became the terminus for the Altrincham electrics and through running from London Road (renamed Piccadilly in that year) ceased. The journey time by the electric trains from Oxford Road to Altrincham was typically 20 or 21 minutes. The CLC trains typically took 13 minutes to travel between Manchester Central (Oxford Road from 1969) and Altrincham with one stop at Sale.
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Mid-Cheshire line
The Mid-Cheshire line is a railway line in the north-west of England that runs from Chester to Edgeley Junction in Stockport; it connects Chester with Manchester Piccadilly, via Knutsford. After Chester Northgate closed in 1969, the section between Mickle Trafford Junction and Chester was used for freight trains only until it closed in 1992; from Mickle Trafford, passenger trains use the Chester–Warrington line to Chester General instead. The route taken by passenger trains has changed over the years and now differs considerably from the original. Between 2001 and 2014, passenger journeys on the line increased to over 1.7 million per year. A near doubling of the passenger service was expected to occur from December 2018, however this did not materialise.
The Mid-Cheshire line has its origins in railways promoted by three separate railway companies in the 19th century. The Cheshire Midland Railway was opened to passengers between Altrincham and Knutsford on 12 May 1862, then completed to Northwich on 1 January 1863. The West Cheshire Railway opened from Northwich to West Cheshire Junction in 1869. This railway was extended from Mouldsworth to a new terminus at Chester Northgate in 1874.
The line from Altrincham to Manchester was the Manchester, South Junction and Altrincham Railway (MSJAR), opened on 20 July 1849 and jointly owned by the London and North Western Railway and the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway (MSLR, later the Great Central Railway). The line from Chester to Altrincham was vested in the Cheshire Lines Committee (CLC), a joint committee regulated by the Great Northern Railway (GNR), MSLR and the Midland Railway (MR). This committee became an independent company after 1867 and survived the 1923 Grouping intact.
Services were operated by the CLC until nationalisation on 1 January 1948, when the line became part of British Railways London Midland Region. Between 1880 and 1969, CLC trains from Chester via Altrincham terminated at Manchester Central.
The junction with the Sandbach branch became a triangular junction in 1957, with the addition of the single-line connection from Sandbach towards Chester.
Before the Beeching closures in the 1960s, there were branch lines with services from the Mid-Cheshire line (see also the Winsford and Over branch). Beeching had no plans to close part or all of the Mid-Cheshire line, although in his proposed second phase of closures there were plans to close the line between Chester and Warrington Bank Quay, which would have increased the number of passengers using the Mid-Cheshire line. Although those proposed closures never went ahead, the original termini at Chester and Manchester were closed in 1969 and services were re-routed to Chester General, via a new junction at Mickle Trafford, and Manchester Oxford Road.
The route was double tracked between Chester and Altrincham, although the section between Mickle Trafford and Mouldsworth was reduced to single track after Chester Northgate station closed in 1969. For many years, the line had the reputation of being one of the busiest double-track routes in the UK.
CLC trains from Manchester to Chester departed from Manchester Central and joined the MSJ&A tracks at Old Trafford, sharing the MSJ&A line as far as Altrincham. These trains usually ran "express", some non-stop, with others calling only at Sale. The frequency of trains over this section led to a large section of the MSJ&A route between Manchester and Altrincham being quadrupled, and the whole route (from Manchester to the former Bowdon railway station, which was used as carriage sidings and repair depot) was electrified at 1500 volts DC in 1931. Local services between Manchester London Road and Altrincham were then provided by electric multiple unit trains. From 1960, Manchester Oxford Road became the terminus for the Altrincham electrics and through running from London Road (renamed Piccadilly in that year) ceased. The journey time by the electric trains from Oxford Road to Altrincham was typically 20 or 21 minutes. The CLC trains typically took 13 minutes to travel between Manchester Central (Oxford Road from 1969) and Altrincham with one stop at Sale.