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LNWR DITTON JCN - WIDNES - ST HELENS. Lost Railways

A trip following the, Ditton Dodger, a nickname used for the service between Ditton Junction and St Helens. visiting stations at Widnes South, Ann Street, Appleton, Farnworth & Bold, Clock Face, Union Bank Farm, Sutton Oak, Peasley Cross and St Helens Shaw Street stations. Originally built by the St Helens and Runcorn Gap Railway company, this line became a main artery for coal traffic, with layouts remodeled by the LNWR to reach a larger audience. The passenger traffic lasted until 1951, but the freight lasted thru to the late 80s. A brief history St Helens and Runcorn Gap Railway, later known as St Helens Railway, was an early railway company in Lancashire, England, which opened in 1833. It ran originally from the town of St Helens to the area which would later develop into the town of Widnes. Work on the line proceeded slowly and its costs overran the estimate. It did not open until 1833 but in November 1832 a train with coal wagons ran over the track because of a wager between one of the owners and the engineer that a train would pass over it by December 1832. The line opened officially on 21 February 1833 but the dock was not completed until August 1833. The Liverpool and Manchester line was crossed by an iron bridge south of St Helens. The line was originally intended for freight but public demand led to passenger coaches being added to the rear of the trains, this service starting in September 1833. There was intense competition between the railway and the canal leading to financial difficulties for both companies, the companies agreed to a merger, with the railway company buying out the canal company to form the St Helens Canal and Railway Company (SHCR). The company set about to improve the situation, doubling the track and easing the gradients so that the whole line could be operated by steam locomotives. The new company then set about planning branch lines and connections. There had been a plan to build northwards from St Helens towards Southport, however this line was built only as far as Rainford. On 21 May 1851 a sharp curve connection had been made on this line from the main line at what was to become known as Widnes Dock Junction. The following year a new Runcorn Gap station was opened nearer to the rapidly growing town of Widnes. In the 1860s people could travel eastwards from Runcorn Gap to Warrington and, from there, to Manchester, London and many other places. They could also travel west to Liverpool by taking a ship at Garston. By 1860 there was considerable competition between the railway companies. The London and North Western Railway (LNWR) wanted to build a line between Edge Hill and Garston. On 29 July 1864, an act was passed which allowed SHCR to be absorbed by LNWR, and the transfer took place on 31 July 1864. Runcorn Gap station was renamed Widnes station on 1 September 1864. Widnes Dock Junction and the flat crossing were causing problems of congestion and the LNWR dealt with this by building a deviation line of just under 1.5 miles (2 km) to the north of the original west–east line, crossing the line leading north to St Helens by a bridge. The line was connected to the St Helens line and it included a new station for passengers. With the opening of the line from Weaver Junction across the Mersey on Runcorn Railway Bridge to Ditton Junction, west of Widnes, the Garston extension became part of the Liverpool-London main line. Following the merger of most of Britain's railways into four private companies in 1923, the line from St Helens to Widnes became part of the London, Midland and Scottish Railway (LMS). Large quantities of freight were carried on the line and the passenger train from St Helen's to Ditton Junction station was nicknamed the Ditton Dodger. Following the end of the Second World War passenger traffic declined and the service provided by the Ditton Dodger ended on 16 June 1951. Freight traffic initially continued to be heavy but it declined during the 1960s. In 1969 the line north from Farnworth and Bold station was singled and in 1975 the line south of the station was also singled. The line closed to through traffic on 1 November 1981.