Work has started on a major revamp of all the railway tracks and signalling in and around Stalybridge station, which will also see alterations to the platforms.
Network Rail said the £20m project is needed because the existing infrastructure is nearing the end of its operational life.
The opportunity is being taken to replace it in such a way that it will meet current needs and those of the future when the line from Manchester is electrified in 2016.
Jo Kaye, Network Rail’s route managing director, explained:
“The current track layout, particularly the junctions at either end of the station, has remained largely unchanged since the end of the First World War.
“The new layout will give us greater operational flexibility and will be more reliable. So far as passengers are concerned, that means better train services now, with the prospect of faster and more frequent services in the future.”
As well as renewing the tracks, the signalling system will be replaced to reflect the changes, and the speed of trains passing through the station will increase from 40 to 50 mph.
Control of train movements in the area will transfer to Manchester East signalling centre in Edgeley, Stockport.
The new signalling system will be commissioned and brought into use in early November.
To ‘relay the junction and carry out the necessary safety tests on the new equipment, there will be no train services from Stalybridge station for nine days over the last week of October and first week of November’, Network Rail said.
