UK: Network Rail will waterproof and strengthen four Victorian-built Merseyrail tunnels during a 26-day closure this autumn, targeting water ingress that can disrupt the network’s third-rail electricity supply.

£3.5m Upgrade for Four Merseyrail Tunnels
Photo: www.networkrailmediacentre.co.uk

The £3.5 million programme is scheduled from Sunday 11 October to Friday 6 November. The Northern line will close between Hunts Cross and Liverpool Central for just under four weeks, with trains due to resume on the morning of Saturday 7 November.

Network Rail says the work is intended to improve long-term reliability by stopping water entering the tunnels and causing problems with the electrified third rail. The announcement describes all four structures as Victorian-built, but it does not identify them individually or specify the strengthening technique planned for the 2026 programme.

Four Victorian Tunnels Will Be Waterproofed and Strengthened

The selected scope combines two types of intervention: waterproofing to limit water ingress and structural strengthening to maintain the tunnels. Network Rail has not published further engineering specifications in the announcement, so the current project should not be assumed to use a particular reinforcement system or treatment.

The company does, however, link the 2026 programme to similar improvements completed at High Neck Tunnel on the Northern line’s southern approach to Liverpool Central.

Don’t miss…Gold Coast tram now runs from Helensvale to Burleigh

Earlier High Neck Repairs Show the Engineering Context

In 2022, Network Rail waterproofed and strengthened the ceiling of High Neck Tunnel between Liverpool Central and Brunswick. That earlier £3.5 million project addressed leaks and loose Victorian brickwork and used steel “ram-arch” reinforcement fixed to the tunnel roof before sprayed concrete was applied.

Those details provide context for the type of engineering challenge found in Liverpool’s older underground infrastructure, but Network Rail has not said that the same method will be used on the four tunnels in the new programme.

Water Ingress Can Disrupt Third-Rail Power

Merseyrail explains that flooding on its network can prevent trains from safely passing through rising water because they cannot draw power from the electrified third rail. In the 2026 programme, Network Rail specifically links tunnel water ingress with problems affecting the third-rail electricity supply.

The closure will also be used to modernise power-control systems across the Northern and Wirral lines, allowing the electrified rail to be switched on and off more quickly for planned maintenance or fault response. On Sundays, the closure will extend to Sandhills and parts of the Wirral line, while replacement buses will operate during the works.

News on railway transport, industry, and railway technologies from Railway Supply that you might have missed:

Don’t miss…Lumo Toilet Faults Force Extra Stops on Long Journeys