Rainhill railway station
Encyclopedia
Rainhill railway station serves the district of Rainhill
in Merseyside
, England
. It is situated on the northern route of the Liverpool to Manchester Line, forming part of the Liverpool City Line
. The original Liverpool and Manchester Railway
which opened in 1830. The station, and all trains serving it, are operated by Northern Rail
on behalf of Merseytravel
and are branded as Merseyrail services.
Rainhill has an important place in railway history
, as the location of the Rainhill Trials
where the proposed designs of locomotive for the Liverpool and Manchester Railway were tested in competition. Rainhill is one of the oldest stations in the world opening in 1830.
George Stephenson
designed and had constructed the Skew arch
bridge across the railway for the opening of the station. The bridge was the first skew to ever cross a railway and is now a listed building.
and either Manchester Victoria
or Warrington Bank Quay
every half hour on Monday to Saturday daytimes. Some trains continue beyond Manchester to destinations such as Stalybridge
or Huddersfield
. During the evenings there is an hourly service to Manchester Victoria & Liverpool.
On Sundays, trains run once per hour between Liverpool Lime Street and Manchester Piccadilly
(instead of Victoria), and continue to Manchester Airport
.
Rainhill
Rainhill is a large village and civil parish of the Metropolitan Borough of St Helens, in Merseyside, England.Historically a part of Lancashire, Rainhill was formerly a township within the ecclesiastical parish of Prescot, and hundred of West Derby...
in Merseyside
Merseyside
Merseyside is a metropolitan county in North West England, with a population of 1,365,900. It encompasses the metropolitan area centred on both banks of the lower reaches of the Mersey Estuary, and comprises five metropolitan boroughs: Knowsley, St Helens, Sefton, Wirral, and the city of Liverpool...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. It is situated on the northern route of the Liverpool to Manchester Line, forming part of the Liverpool City Line
City Line (Merseyrail)
The City Line is the name given to local rail routes out of Liverpool Lime Street station, Liverpool, Merseyside. It appears on maps of the Merseyrail network as red, and covers the Liverpool-Wigan Line as well as the two routes of the Liverpool-Manchester Line...
. The original Liverpool and Manchester Railway
Liverpool and Manchester Railway
The Liverpool and Manchester Railway was the world's first inter-city passenger railway in which all the trains were timetabled and were hauled for most of the distance solely by steam locomotives. The line opened on 15 September 1830 and ran between the cities of Liverpool and Manchester in North...
which opened in 1830. The station, and all trains serving it, are operated by Northern Rail
Northern Rail
Northern Rail is a British train operating company that has operated local passenger services in Northern England since 2004. Northern Rail's owner, Serco-Abellio, is a consortium formed of Abellio and Serco, an international operator of public transport systems...
on behalf of Merseytravel
Merseytravel
Merseytravel Merseytravel Merseytravel (MPTE, or Merseyside Passenger Transport Executive, is the Passenger Transport Executive responsible for the coordination of public transport in the metropolitan county of Merseyside, England...
and are branded as Merseyrail services.
Rainhill has an important place in railway history
History of rail transport in Great Britain
The railway system of Great Britain, the principal territory of the United Kingdom, is the oldest in the world. The system was originally built as a patchwork of local rail links operated by small private railway companies. These isolated links developed during the railway boom of the 1840s into a...
, as the location of the Rainhill Trials
Rainhill Trials
The Rainhill Trials were an important competition in the early days of steam locomotive railways, run in October 1829 in Rainhill, Lancashire for the nearly completed Liverpool and Manchester Railway....
where the proposed designs of locomotive for the Liverpool and Manchester Railway were tested in competition. Rainhill is one of the oldest stations in the world opening in 1830.
George Stephenson
George Stephenson
George Stephenson was an English civil engineer and mechanical engineer who built the first public railway line in the world to use steam locomotives...
designed and had constructed the Skew arch
Skew arch
A skew arch is a method of construction that enables an arch bridge to span an obstacle at some angle other than a right angle. This results in the faces of the arch not being perpendicular to its abutments and its plan view being a parallelogram, rather than the rectangle that is the plan view of...
bridge across the railway for the opening of the station. The bridge was the first skew to ever cross a railway and is now a listed building.
Services
Rainhill is served by Northern Rail services between Liverpool Lime StreetLiverpool Lime Street railway station
Liverpool Lime Street is a railway station serving the city centre of Liverpool, England. The station lies on a branch of the West Coast Main Line from London Euston, and on the Wirral Line of the Merseyrail network...
and either Manchester Victoria
Manchester Victoria station
Manchester Victoria station in Manchester, England is the city's second largest mainline railway station. It is also a Metrolink station, one of eight within the City Zone...
or Warrington Bank Quay
Warrington Bank Quay railway station
Warrington Bank Quay railway station is a mainline railway station serving the UK town of Warrington. The town centre has two stations on opposite sides of the main shopping area, Warrington Central operating a more frequent service to the neighbouring cities Liverpool and Manchester...
every half hour on Monday to Saturday daytimes. Some trains continue beyond Manchester to destinations such as Stalybridge
Stalybridge railway station
Stalybridge railway station serves Stalybridge, Greater Manchester. It lies on the Huddersfield Line 12 km east of Manchester Piccadilly and 13 km east of Manchester Victoria. The station is managed by First TransPennine Express....
or Huddersfield
Huddersfield railway station
Huddersfield railway station serves the town of Huddersfield in West Yorkshire, England.The station is managed by First TransPennine Express who provide trains between the North East, North and East Yorkshire, and Leeds to the east and Manchester Piccadilly and North West.It is also served by local...
. During the evenings there is an hourly service to Manchester Victoria & Liverpool.
On Sundays, trains run once per hour between Liverpool Lime Street and Manchester Piccadilly
Manchester Piccadilly station
Manchester Piccadilly is the principal railway station in Manchester, England. It serves intercity routes to London Euston, Birmingham New Street, South Wales, the south coast of England, Edinburgh and Glasgow Central, and routes throughout northern England...
(instead of Victoria), and continue to Manchester Airport
Manchester Airport railway station
Manchester Airport railway station is the railway station that serves Manchester Airport and is built into the airport's terminal buildings. The station was opened together with the second airport terminal in 1993.- Description:...
.