Ainsdale Beach railway station

Ainsdale Beach
Location
Place	Ainsdale
Area	Sefton
Coordinates
Grid reference	SD302128
Operations
Line	Southport & Cheshire Lines Extension Railway
Original company	Cheshire Lines Committee
Pre-grouping	Cheshire Lines Committee
Post-grouping	Cheshire Lines Committee
Platforms	2
History
19 June 1901	Station opened as "Seaside"
1 January 1912	Station renamed "Ainsdale Beach"
1 January 1917	Station closed as a wartime economy measure
1 April 1919	Station reopened
7 January 1952	Station closed
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Cheshire Lines Committee
Legend
Merseyside Lines  Southport Lord Street Birkdale Palace to Southport Ainsdale Ainsdale Beach Northern Line Woodvale Freshfield to Liverpool Central Liverpool, Southport and Preston Junction Railway Barton Mossbridge Hillhouse Junction Altcar and Hillhouse Lydiate Sefton and Maghull to Ormskirk Old Roan Aintree Junction Southport Junction Aintree Central Aintree Northern Line Warbreck Orrell Park Walton to Kirkby Rice Lane to Liverpool Central Fazakerley Junctions Walton on the Hill Huskisson Clubmoor West Derby Knotty Ash & Stanley Broad Green City Line Childwall Gateacre Northern Line Liverpool Central Liverpool Central High Level St James Brunswick(original) Egerton Street Junction Brunswick St Michaels Otterspool Aigburth Cressington to Lime Street Garston Liverpool South Parkway Hunts Cross West Junction Hunts Cross to Manchester Central

Ainsdale Beach was a railway station located in Ainsdale, Merseyside, England.

History

The Southport & Cheshire Lines Extension Railway (SCLER) opened a line extending their existing system from Aintree to Southport on 1 September 1884. Seeing the potential in Ainsdale's large beach they subsequently built this station, which opened as Seaside in 1901. In 1911 it was decided to rename the station Ainsdale Beach, which took effect from 1 January 1912.

The station was built adjacent to a hotel called The Lakeside Hotel (in 2015 named 'The Sands' and trading as a local pub) situated at the coastal end of Shore Road. A terraced row of railway staff cottages immediately next to the station still stood in 2015, although all station structures, signal box and level crossing have long gone.

It was served by trains from Southport Lord Street, Liverpool Central and Manchester Central.

A total eclipse of the sun occurred in June 1927. The railway provided many excursion specials to many locations, including Ainsdale Beach.

Run down and closure

The station first closed in 1917, along with all other stations on the extension line, as a First World War economy measure.

The station reopened on 1 April 1919, and continued in use until 7 January 1952, when the SCLER was closed to passengers from Aintree Central to Southport Lord Street. Public goods facilities were ended at Woodvale, Lydiate and Sefton & Maghull stations on the same day and there never were any goods facilities at Ainsdale Beach station. The line remained open for public goods traffic until 7 July 1952 at Southport Lord Steet, Birkdale Palace and Altcar & Hillhouse stations. A siding remained open at Altcar & Hillhouse for private goods facilities until May 1960. The very last passenger train to run on the SCLER was a railway enthusiasts' special train between Aintree and Altcar & Hillhouse stations on 6 June 1959.

The line came under the Cheshire Lines Committee until nationalisation in 1948, wherafter it came under the London Midland Region of British Railways until closure.

The site today

Later the track bed through the station site was used to support what is now the Coastal Road, which runs from Woodvale to Southport. At this point the road is also part of the Trans Pennine Trail.

External links

• The station via Disused Stations UK
• The station on a 1888-1913 Overlay OS Map via National Library of Scotland
• Station on a 1948 O.S. map via npe Maps
• Station and line HTS via railwaycodes
• Railtours via sixbellsjunction
• Aerial photos via Britain from Above
• Rare photos via Ainsdale Civic Society

Preceding station	Disused railways			Following station
Woodvale		Cheshire Lines Committee SCLER		Birkdale Palace