There are various modes of transport available in Warrington.
Rail Warrington has seven railway stations within its boundaries. The town has two main railway stations, Bank Quay on the London to Glasgow and Chester – Warrington – Newton-le-Willows – Manchester lines, and Central on the Liverpool – Widnes – Manchester line and the Transpennine route. Bank Quay is much altered, but Central (built 1873) is of some architectural merit, featuring polychromatic brickwork. However, both main railway stations have suffered from years of under investment. A new entrance and concourse has been built at Bank Quay, and similar work started in July 2010 at Central station. There are also stations in the suburbs at Warrington West, Sankey, Glazebrook, Padgate and Birchwood.
Routes through Bank Quay
Warrington Bank Quay, to the south-west of Warrington's town centre, is between Crewe and Preston on the West Coast Main Line from London Euston and Birmingham New Street to Glasgow and Edinburgh, with services operated by Avanti West Coast. There are also regional trains from Manchester to Chester and North Wales, from Chester to Leeds, and to Liverpool with one daily service to Ellesmere Port. Arpley and Walton Sidings nearby are a major rail freight interchange, and connect the main line to the freight line to Ditton Junction, which served Fiddlers Ferry Power Station until its closure, crossing the main line under Bank Quay station, where there were once low level platforms.
Routes through Central
Central station has local services to Liverpool and Manchester and express services from Liverpool to Manchester then to Sheffield and beyond.
The trains departing Central serve the urban-rural fringe of Warrington and Manchester, serving Birchwood, Padgate, Irlam etc. before heading into Manchester. To the west, some trains serve Warrington West Station before heading into Merseyside and Liverpool. Beyond Manchester, the hourly East Midlands Railway train serves Manchester and then heads to Sheffield, Nottingham and Norwich.
The station has an average daytime frequency of four trains per hour (three local trains operated by Northern and one fast train to Norwich (East Midlands Railway).
History The first railway to reach Warrington was the Warrington and Newton Railway in 1831, which connected to the Liverpool and Manchester Railway. Later, the Grand Junction Railway provided a connection to Birmingham and thence to London.
By 1900 the local rail network was complete, with the London and North Western Railway having 3 routes
North to South (Carlisle-Preston-Warrington Bank Quay-Crewe-London) East to West (Manchester-Warrington Bank Quay (low level)-Ditton Junction-Liverpool Warrington Bank Quay to Chester and North Wales
and the Cheshire Lines Committee having one route from Liverpool Central via Warrington Central to Manchester Central. There was also a line avoiding Warrington Central (closed in 1968).
The Warrington Bank Quay low level route was closed to regular passenger traffic in 1962. Occasional freight services continue on the Ditton Junction-Warrington section but the line east towards Manchester has been closed and converted into the Trans-Pennine Trail.
Former stations in the Warrington area include
closed 1949 – Sankey Bridges 1950 – Fidler's Ferry and Penketh 1954 – Warrington Arpley 1962 – Heatley and Warburton, Lymm, Latchford, Thelwall
Buses The town and its districts are fairly well served by bus services. Warrington's Own Buses is the main provider of services, operating most of the day time bus routes. Arriva North West, Stagecoach Manchester. National Express also operate their long-distance services through Warrington. Most services that serve Warrington depart from and arrive at Warrington Interchange. However services can be caught from various points around the town centre, principally Rylands Street (for South and Eastbound routes), Academy Way (Inbound and Eastbound routes), Warrington Central for Northbound services, Sankey Street for Westbound, Eastbound and Southbound buses.