Passengers’ anger at Wirral Line rail disruption
THE CHAOS has begun for Wirral commuters after the weekend closure of the Merseyrail Loop Line.
The six-week shut down started on Good Friday to enable £3.4m of work to be completed on a track replacement project which started in 2005.
Merseyrail and Network Rail said they have timed the disruption to bridge several bank holidays and minimise inconvenience for passengers.
But travellers on the service slammed the decision to start the work over the Easter weekend.
And their anger was heightened when passengers discovered that initially trains were stopping at Birkenhead - and not travelling at least to James Street as expected.
The work now being carried out is the fifth and final stage of a five-year, £20m project that was held off last year to avoid damaging Capital of Culture events.
But mum-of-two Samantha Ridsdale, 32, of Town Lane, Bebington, said: “Journeys just take so much longer.
“It’s the worst time to do this kind of work, there’s so many people wanting to travel over the Bank Holiday weekend and take advantage of the days off. This just causes so many extra complications.”
Her views were echoed by Nick Boyle, 34, of Ellesmere Port, who said: “It’s an absolute pain.
“It takes about 15 to 20 minutes longer and it’s just stupid doing it over the Bank Holiday while there’s so many people out and about wanting to use public transport.
Tony Garrett, secretary of Wirral Transport Users Association, said: “It’s a great inconvenience to have this all over again.”
But a Network Rail spokeswoman said passengers had been kept fully informed of the changes.
She said: “We’ve done all we can to try and let everyone know in advance.”
All sections of the Loop line will now be closed until Tuesday, May 26.
THE WIRRAL NEWS