Every single Southport to Manchester Oxford Road service through Bolton has been cancelled on Thursday as a red extreme heat warning grips the region, Northern has confirmed. The operator says 18 trains running via Bolton, Westhoughton, Hindley and Wigan Wallgate have been pulled from the timetable because of severe weather, leaving passengers on one of the borough’s busiest rail corridors with no direct service.
Northern has also warned that several Manchester Victoria to Wigan services are being diverted or cut short. The evening 19:52 and 20:51 Stalybridge to Wigan North Western trains will skip their normal path after Hindley, terminating at Wigan Wallgate instead. Across Manchester, the operator has sharply reduced timetables until the end of Friday 26 June, with services remaining in high demand. National Rail is urging passengers to travel only if absolutely necessary on both Thursday and Friday.
Anyone whose train is cancelled can use their ticket on any Northern service within two hours before or after their original departure time. Passengers delayed by 15 minutes or more are being directed to the company’s Delay Repay scheme at northernrailway.co.uk/delay-repay to claim compensation.
The wider disruption tracks the Met Office’s red extreme heat warning, which has forced Network Rail to impose speed restrictions that ripple through commuter routes. Northern says the heat is expected to last through Friday, with the Manchester network remaining on a reduced footing. Travellers between Bolton and Manchester, Wigan, or Southport are warned to check for last-minute cancellations and allow significantly longer journey times.
Affected stations stretch from Southport through Burscough Bridge, Parbold, Appley Bridge, Gathurst, Wigan Wallgate, Ince, Hindley, Westhoughton, Bolton, Salford Crescent and Deansgate to Manchester Oxford Road. The operator’s service-updates page carries live information as conditions evolve.
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