Liverpool Baltic | |
|---|---|
| General information | |
| Location | Toxteth, Liverpool England |
| Coordinates | 53°23′38″N2°58′34″W / 53.3939°N 2.9760°W |
| Grid reference | SJ 351 890 |
| Platforms | 2 |
| Other information | |
| Status | Proposed |
| Key dates | |
| 2025 | Construction planned to begin |
| 2028 | Planned opening |
Liverpool Baltic railway station is a proposed station in Toxteth, Liverpool, which would be built on the site of the former St James station, which closed in 1917. [1] Construction is expected to start in 2025, and the station would be open around three years later. [2]
In 2012, Liverpool's Strategic Investment Framework listed the reopening of St James as important to the success of the Baltic Triangle development. Merseytravel agreed to work with Liverpool Vision in March 2014 to investigate the cost of reopening the station and its projected usage. [3] In January 2015, Merseytravel confirmed that they would be carrying out a study for the station's potential reopening in the 2015–16 financial year. [4] Merseyrail listed the re-opening of the station as a 'top rail project' during a presentation on rail development and delivery in November 2016. [5]
Merseytravel commissioned a report into the reopening of the station which was completed in September 2017. [6] The report compared reopening St James against the construction of a new station in the Chinatown area of Liverpool. While the report found many benefits to opening a station in the city's Chinatown area, it concluded that: "A new station at St James is feasible and potentially highly beneficial, albeit at a high cost and with correspondingly reduced value for money." [6] Merseytravel's chairman Liam Robinson stated in an interview with the Liverpool Echo in February 2019 that reopening the station would be a significant task and would involve the construction of new platforms, ticket offices, waiting areas and lift shafts. [7]
Liverpool City Region Combined Authority announced in August 2019 that they were planning to use part of a £172 million funding package to reopen the station, subject to the plans being approved. [8]
In October 2020, it was announced that £1.2 million of these funds were to be used to commission Network Rail to complete the next stage of design work for the reopening project. A further £300,000 of these funds had been used to purchase a plot of land adjacent to the station site upon which the Combined Authority hopes a future ticket office might be constructed. [9] In 2020, the Combined Authority applied for additional funding for the reopening project from the third round of the Department for Transport's New Stations Fund. [9] A public vote was put forward in January 2022 by Merseytravel and the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority, to choose a name for the station when it reopens. [10] Officials felt that the existing name for the station would cause confusion with James Street station. The public were asked to choose a new name between:
On 12 April 2022, the results of the vote were announced, with 77.7% of the public voting for Liverpool Baltic as the name of the new station. [11]
Work on the station was intended to start in 2024, however, as of December 2023, planning work was still being undertaken. [2] The Liverpool City Region Combined Authority expect to apply for planning permission in 2024 with construction commencing in 2025.
The station would be between Liverpool Central and Brunswick, and would be served by trains operating between Southport and Hunts Cross. [12]
| Preceding station |  National Rail | Following station | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liverpool Central | Merseyrail Northern Line | Brunswick towards Hunts Cross | ||
Merseyrail is a commuter rail network which serves Merseyside and adjacent areas of Cheshire and Lancashire. Merseyrail serves 69 stations, 67 of which it manages, across two lines – the Northern Line and the Wirral Line. The network uses 750 V DC third rail electrified lines having 75.0 miles (120.7 km) of routes, of which 6.5 miles (10.5 km) are underground. Since January 2023, Merseyrail commenced replacing its train fleet, withdrawing the Class 507 and 508 trains and introducing 53 new Class 777 trains. The network carried 25.5 million passengers in the 2022/2023 statistical period.
Merseytravel is the passenger transport executive, responsible for the coordination of public transport in the Liverpool City Region in North West England. Merseytravel was established on 1 December 1969 as the Merseyside Passenger Transport Executive. From 1 April 2014, with the creation of the Liverpool City Region, Merseytravel expanded its area of operation from the metropolitan county of Merseyside to also include the Borough of Halton.
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The British Rail Class 777 METRO is a class of electric multiple unit passenger trains currently being delivered by the Swiss rolling stock manufacturer Stadler Rail, being used on the Merseyrail network in the Liverpool City Region and adjacent areas of Cheshire and Lancashire. The trains have the ability to operate on the third rail-powered sections of the network, with some units carrying onboard batteries to allow use on unpowered track, a UK first. Ordered in 2016, construction of the units began in 2018. The first unit entered service on 23 January 2023, following delays to the deployment programme. The Class 777 will replace Merseyrail's current Class 507 and Class 508 units, which were built between 1978 and 1980. Seven units of the total 53 ordered are being configured as battery electric multiple units (BEMUs) for use on non-electrified lines, being designated subclass 777/1.
