New £80m rail station opens this week as Merseyrail launches battery powered train service

Kirkby’s brand new Headbolt Lane train station will officially open on Thursday (October 5), following an £80m investment.

The fully accessible station is the first to be served by the Liverpool City Region’s new publicly owned battery powered trains, as part of the Mayor’s plans to deliver a London-style transport network.

In a phased roll-out of the new technology, the station will initially be served by one Merseyrail service per-hour to Liverpool Central, then services will gradually increase to four trains per hour. The station will also have limited spaces initially, due to outstanding work, before reaching full capacity in the coming weeks.

Steve Rotheram, Mayor of the Liverpool City Region, said: “As a Kirkby native, I know how long local people have been talking about a station at Headbolt Lane. Thanks to devolution and the power it gives us to shape our own destiny, we’ve turned that talk into reality.”

Over 20,000 people in the Northwood and Shevington areas of Kirkby are expected to benefit from having the new rail service on their doorstep – with 60% of households not owning a car in these areas.

Mayor Rotheram added: “Headbolt Lane station sets a new standard for public transport in this country – and it’s the very least that our residents deserve. We’re incredibly grateful to local people and passengers on the Kirkby line for their patience and understanding throughout this project – I hope they’ll agree with me that it’s been worth the wait!”