The Anonymous Widower

Is Wigan North Western Station Ready For High Speed Two?

This diagram shows High Speed Two services, as they were originally envisaged before Phase 2 was discontinued.

Note.

1. Trains to the left of the vertical black line are Phase 1 and those to the right are Phase 2.
2. Full-Size trains are shown in blue.
3. Classic-Compatible trains are shown in yellow.
4. Blue circles are shown, where trains stop.
5. The dotted circles are where trains split and join.
6. In the red boxes routes alternate every hour.
7. Was Lancaster chosen as it’s close to the new Eden Project Morecambe?

Click on the diagram to enlarge it.

It would appear if High Speed Two sticks to this original pattern of services, then the following trains will go through Wigan North Western station.

• 200 metre single train – London Euston and Lancaster, which stops at Old Oak Common, Crewe, Warrington Bank Quay, Wigan North Western and Preston.
• 400 metre pair of trains – London Euston and Edinburgh Haymarket/Edinburgh Waverley/Glasgow Central, which stops at Old Oak Common, Preston, Carlisle.
• 400 metre pair of trains – London Euston and Edinburgh Haymarket/Edinburgh Waverley/Glasgow Central, which stops at Old Oak Common, Birmingham Interchange, Preston, Carlisle.
• 200 metre single train – Birmingham Curzon Street and Edinburgh Haymarket/Edinburgh Waverley or Motherwell/Glasgow Central, which stops at Wigan North Western, Preston, Lancaster, Carlisle and Lockerby and every two hours at Oxenholme and Penrith.

Note.

1. Only single High Speed Two classic-compatible trains, stop in Wigan North Western station and they are only two hundred metres long.
2. One train per hour (tph) terminates at Lancaster and a second tph terminates alternatively at Edinburgh Haymarket/Edinburgh Waverley or Glasgow Central.
3. Four hundred metre long pairs of trains go through North Western station without stopping.

Currently Wigan North Western has 14 trains per day (tpd) stopping at the station, eleven of which go to Scotland and three to Blackpool.

This Google Map shows Wigan North Western station.

Note.

1. The two long platforms in the middle of the station, where the Avanti trains stop.
2. A long platform on the Southern side of the station used by local services to and from Liverpool and Blackpool.
3. Three bay platforms on the Northern side of the station, one of which is unused, that handle local services to Manchester and beyond.

As the 265.3 metre long Class 390 trains can use the central platforms, High Speed Two classic-compatible trains will be able to use these platforms.

On my brief visit to the station yesterday, I took these pictures.

Note.

1. All Class 390 trains are longer than High Speed Two classic-compatible trains, so the train in the pictures indicates that the High Speed Two trains will be able to stop at Wigan North Western station.
2. The platforms are long and wide.
3. The station is well-equipped with lifts, cafes, waiting rooms and some of the best toilets in a station in the North of England.
4. Wigan Wallgate station is only a short walk away, with a selection of local services to Blackburn, Headbolt Lane, Manchester, Southport and a large proportion of Lancashire.
5. The last two pictures were taken looking at the two stations from halfway.
6. The shops between the two stations are a good selection and include a Morrisons Local.

I had been intending to go on to Preston, Lancaster and Morecambe, but a points failure at Preston meant that no trains were running.

Conclusion

The two Wigan stations and the buses that serve them,  could be a good interchange for passengers to catch High Speed Two.

I feel that most of the work needed to be done at Wigan North Western to get the station ready for High Speed Two will mainly be cosmetic or technical upgrades like signalling. I can’t see any expensive or disruptive upgrades like platform lengthening being needed.

May 11, 2025 - Posted by AnonW | Transport/Travel | Birmingham Interchange Station, Carlisle Station, Edinburgh Haymarket Station, Edinburgh Station, Euston Station, Glasgow Central Station, High Speed Two, High Speed Two Classic-Compatible Trains, Lancaster Station, lockerby Station, Motherwell Station, Old Oak Common Station, Oxenholme Lake District Station, Penrith North Lakes Station, Preston Station, Warrington Bank Quay Station, Wigan North Western Station