No Wirral Line trains will run under the Mersey from Saturday 16 to Tuesday 19 January, or from Sunday 21 to Wednesday 24 February. Buses replace them.

No Wirral Line trains will run between Birkenhead and Liverpool for four days in January and four more in February. Merseyrail has added the closures to its planned engineering work page. Rail replacement buses will run instead.

The dates are:

  • Saturday 16 to Tuesday 19 January 2027
  • Sunday 21 to Wednesday 24 February 2027

That takes in five working days: Monday 18 and Tuesday 19 January, and Monday 22 to Wednesday 24 February. Merseyrail’s planned engineering work page, read on Friday 13 November, lists both closures. It does not say what the work is.

Where trains will still run

On both sets of dates, Merseyrail says trains will run:

  • from Chester and Ellesmere Port to Birkenhead Central
  • from West Kirby and New Brighton to Birkenhead North

Replacement buses will run between Birkenhead Central and Moorfields, and between Birkenhead North and Moorfields.

So every Wirral Line journey into Liverpool will need a bus for the last part. Hamilton Square, Conway Park and Birkenhead Park sit beyond the points where trains turn back, so no trains will reach them. James Street, Moorfields, Lime Street and Liverpool Central are the Liverpool end of the line.

More closures on the Chester line

The same page lists three shorter closures at the south end of the line. On each, buses run between Chester and Hooton, and trains run from Hooton to Liverpool:

  • Sunday 10 January
  • Saturday 16 and Sunday 17 January
  • Saturday 23 and Sunday 24 January

On 16 and 17 January, that means a train from Chester or Capenhurst needs a bus to Hooton, a train to Birkenhead Central and another bus into Liverpool.

What it means for you

  • If you commute by train to Liverpool: plan for a bus from Birkenhead on Monday 18 and Tuesday 19 January, and from Monday 22 to Wednesday 24 February. Allow extra time.
  • If you take a bike: Merseyrail does not carry bikes on its replacement buses, and its e-bike ban starts on 1 January 2027.
  • If you can get to Seacombe: the Mersey Ferries commuter boat runs on weekdays only, every 20 minutes from 07:20 to 09:40 in the morning and 17:00 to 18:40 in the evening. An adult single is £3.10 (Mersey Ferries commuter service).
  • If you drive: both Mersey tunnels are open on our latest check, and the roadworks and travel page carries any tunnel closures booked for those weeks.

Merseyrail’s page says the effect on times will show in its journey planner. The engineering page is the place to check before you travel, because dates can change.