In this next instalment of my quest to visit 2589 railway stations in the United Kingdom, I explore stations between Liverpool Central and Southport, including Moorfields, Sandhills, and, of course, Bank Hall station, which marks the start of the main branch to Southport. The line originally terminated at Liverpool Exchange until the 1970s when the Loop and Link were introduced.

From Moorfields, I then headed to my next station along the line, Sandhills Station. This is a major junction where the lines from Ormskirk, Southport, and Headbolt Lane (Kirkby) all connect before making their way underground towards Moorfields and Liverpool Central Stations. The station was originally named North Docks and has been extensively modified since its original construction in 1854.

From Sandhills, we head onto the main section of the line towards Southport, passing through both Bootle and Bank Hall Stations. On these station days out, I usually skip a station and return to it later if that makes sense. Unfortunately I don’t have a decent photo of the platform however I have visited this station.

From Bank Hall, I had about 15 minutes to wait for my next train to take me further up the line. I wasn’t sure whether to head to Seaforth & Litherland or the famous Waterloo station, as both have island platforms, allowing for a fairly quick change between them. This would enable me to make my way back to Bootle New Strand before continuing towards Southport.

I travelled from Seaforth & Litherland to Bootle New Strand, which means I’ve now visited both Bootle stations on the Merseyrail network. I believe there are three Bootle stations in the UK: Bootle Oriel Road, New Strand, and just Bootle. However, I’m unsure of its location, but I look forward to discovering it.

From Bootle New Strand I again continue up the line towards Southport eventually ticking off every single station until I again reach Southport, I feel like I do repeat my self quite a lot in these posts. From memory I headed up to Hall Road Station which is a station I have spent a fair bit of time at in the pasta and when we have been on Rail Tours we always stop there for some reason.

When I visit Waterloo, I often joke about the ABBA song and how it was once one of the busiest stations in the UK, known as London Waterloo, until London Liverpool Street surpassed it with the opening of the Elizabeth Line in 2022. I appreciate Waterloo Station for its island platforms and spacious layout. Additionally, it’s interesting to note that a disused ramp has been replaced with a lift.

Starting from Waterloo Station, I travel to Freshfield and then return to head to Formby, making good progress in my mission to visit every station on the Southport line. There are two lines that lead to Southport from Liverpool: the main line from Sandhills via Bank Hall, and the other line that heads towards Ormskirk, branching off near Aintree. However, this line is now disused.

I have fond memories of visiting Formby as a child to see my Grandma, who sadly passed away in 2019. Whenever I’m here, I take a moment to remember her and the times we spent watching the trains speed by. There was, and I believe still is, a foot crossing near her home where I would always go to watch the trains.

From Formby, I then head towards Hillside, which was not a step-free station until recently. I believe lifts were installed in 2022/23 to make it step-free, which is becoming a common sight on the network. By 2030, I believe Steve Rotherham, the Metro Mayor, wants to make Merseyrail the most accessible network in the country outside of London.

Upon arriving at Ainsdale Station, I decided to take a bus to my final station of the day, as I had previously visited Southport Station in another post when I headed towards Wigan Wallgate. I am also looking forward to continuing that line to Manchester Victoria in the near future. In this post, Birkdale will be my final station, and I really hope you have enjoyed reading it.

The purpose of this series is to demonstrate that I have visited every station in the UK, complete with photos of platforms, trains, and station buildings to prove my commitment to this challenge. Please consider subscribing to the blog to stay updated on my progress and the number of stations I have visited so far.

Once again, thank you for reading, and I truly hope you’re finding these adventures interesting. I am thoroughly enjoying writing about them and sharing the photos from my trips. As of now, I have visited around 493 railway stations in the UK. I originally started back in 2022, but things got the better of me with social media. However, I am back on track!