Train passengers advised of urgent Lancaster railway station lift repairs next week

Network Rail is carrying out the fix to make the lift serving the busy platforms more reliable after recent breakdowns.

The complexity of the important work means the lift will be out of use between Monday November 6 and Friday November 10.

It’ll affect passengers on intercity services to London, Birmingham, Manchester and Preston, and some trains towards Morecambe, Barrow and Leeds.

With the lift out of action, people are being advised to plan their journeys in advance by contacting their train operator’s Passenger Assistance service*.

Avanti West Coast Passenger Assist - 0345 528 0253

TransPennine Express Passenger Assist - 0800 107 2149

Northern Trains Passenger Assist - 0800 138 5560

For passengers planning to depart from Lancaster, alternative transport to the nearest stations with step-free access – Oxenholme for northbound journeys or Preston for southbound – can be booked in advance.

People are being advised to allow extra time for their journeys as a result.

Kara Wood, Network Rail’s North West head of performance and customer relationship, said: “We know there’s never an ideal time to close a lift and we’re sorry to passengers who’ll be affected by these urgent repairs next week. We’re calling in specialist lift engineers to repair ongoing problems with the lift’s control panel so it’s much more reliable for passengers in future.

“Unfortunately, the complexity of the repair means we’ve no choice but to take the lift out of service for several days. I’d urge people needing step-free access to platforms 4 and 5 to contact their Passenger Assistance teams as soon as possible to make alternative arrangements during the repair work.”

Michael Byrne, Avanti West Coast station manager at Lancaster, said: “We’re working with Network Rail and industry partners to help customers as these works take place.

"As always, our teams will be on hand to help customers travelling to and from Lancaster during this time but we strongly recommend customers plan ahead, check before they travel and leave extra time for their journey.

"We would like to thank customers for their patience while Network Rail undertake this work.”

The lift is due to be back in use on Saturday November 11.

Passengers can always plan their journey in advance by visiting https://www.nationalrail.co.uk/