 Hello, thanks for joining me this morning. I'm at Warrington Bank key station one of free railway stations in the Cheshire town And this one is on the west coast main line. That's looking towards Glasgow That's looking towards London. This station opened in 1868 and it's the oldest of the free railway stations in the town One thing it used to have that doesn't have any more so these are the main there's the four through platforms There actually used to be a low-level Platforms here on what's now the freight only line to Fiddler's ferry power station Now they would have been on the other side the station But the reason I'm bringing you down this way past all the factories is because up here we get quite a good view of The freight only line and you never know if a very lucky a train might come along But I'm not gonna hang around waiting for one. So what we're gonna do we come to this station Warrington Bank key We're gonna go and have a look at Warrington Central And you may know that recently another station has opened in Warrington Warrington West So we're starting at the oldest and we're gonna finish at the brand new Warrington West station So we get to here you can see in the track the concrete slabs. That is the the bridge where the freight only line goes underneath. So if you look down there You can clearly see the freight only line tracks and London as a voyager is just pulling in What I'm gonna do I'm gonna run over to the other side I'm gonna beat the rush of people coming off the voyage. Yeah, because what I want to show you is Where the low-level platforms with the bin that have been on the other side not that side so the low-level platforms closed in 1963 So until then Warrington I wouldn't go as far saying this was two stations. It was kind of one station, but we have Two separate sets of platform. I think unofficially it was known as high-level and low-level So we just come up here There's that voyager Ex-verge and trains voyager now, of course, it's the Vancey West Coast and we're standing directly on the bridge here above the freight only lines So if you look over there where the power box is the low-level platforms Would have been just down there behind that policy fence, and I believe also The track curve that way to join the main line or certainly curved one way to join the main line If anyone wants to comment and confirm but down there, that's where the low-level platforms would have been So as the Vancey West Coast trains Voyager departs the station. I'm also gonna leave the station I'm gonna head off for a walk Through the town of Warrington. I've never ever been to this town before. There goes the voyager Those voyagers are due to be replaced with them well as everyone calls them a zoomers even though that's technically just in the arse term but the Hitachi trains they're due to be replaced So not sure what happens to the voyagers I suspect maybe cross-country might take them on So as we come out here The railway station There's a ticket office We go out here across the road and then I'm gonna walk through the town. So as we come out here Not the most exciting entrance to a railway station. What we can do before we go any further Is have a look at where a better look at where the low-level platforms were. I've just noticed there's some steps There's actually a bridge That's useful. Let's go up there We can go right above where the low-level platforms would have been I'm gonna go for a walk around the town center and walk to Warrington Central Which we'll talk more about when we get there and after I've been to Warrington Central Of course we'll get a train to the brand new Warrington West So Warrington West opened before Christmas and I've been wanting to go there ever since it's a new railway station And today is gonna be that day So from this bridge You can see clearly the freight only lines believe us So the low-level platforms would have been here somewhere But I think not entirely sure there might have been a line that curves off behind the power signal box and join the main line here There's the platforms at Warrington Bank Key. So time for me to go and walk through the town of Warrington So I'm now walking from Warrington Bank Key to Warrington Central station And as I said, I've never been to this town before so I'm kind of using the opportunity to explore the town So I'm in an area now known as Palmyra Square I hope I'm pronouncing that right if I'm not anyone who knows Then please do comment and say some dyslexics occasionally. I do pronounce me wrong So this is Palmyra Square in the center of Warrington. There's some rather interesting buildings over there It's the old technical school. It is now a restaurant now I'm gonna take you up here because there is a very interesting building and also Some gates worth seeing so those of you local probably know where I'm heading for but if you're not local and you don't know then keep watching and You'll soon see Strangely quite quiet the town at this time, but I'm gonna put that down to the fact It's a January Sunday morning. I'm sure if I came here, you know on an afternoon in June There probably be a lot more people about but just feel a bit weird. I really feel like I've got this whole town to myself so we are Going this way The building I want to show you Love your technical school. The building I want to show you is just around the corner and I'm sure you'll agree with me when you see it. It's a very attractive building That's looking towards the town centre, which I shall also go and see It's what I've come to show you. It's just starting to reveal itself Now it looks like a Palladian stately home. Now wait, it's a Palladian building It's actually Warrington Town Hall And it was built in 1750 I believe I think it might have wings coming forward once so That's Warrington Town Hall now. It's got these rather grand gates, which make it even more like a stately home There's a 60s Ruthless building there So I'm just gonna run across the road while there's a gap in the traffic So it's got these grand gates as I said, which make it look even more like a stately home now These were made at Colbrookdale down in Shropshire and There's a story that they were donated to Queen Victoria, but she declined them So they were put here in 1865. I believe was when they were put here So I think they're very you know very grand gates. It really I think it's a lovely thing to see really in the town And then of course behind them is the town hall. I'm just gonna walk into the park In front of the town hall just so we can have a closer look and then I'm gonna carry on walking through to Warrington Central station and then we're gonna then make our way to the new Warrington West So it really is a let's see the free railway stations of Warrington today But also seen as we're here We might as well, you know explore the town because it's always fascinating I think to go to a town you've never been to before and just have a look around and you know See what there is to see. Let's just see this side the gates and then We shall get a better view of the town hall So another great view of them Up on top the shield on top of some Latin writing on so what I'll do I'll take some pictures and So you can have a better look Everything but I think yeah, they're really impressive And I'm just gonna finish this Before we head on to our next part of the town with a view over to the town hall In Warrington town centre now. There's quite a mixture of buildings from churches. I think you just heard the bell 1960s architecture. There is a church. It's not the main parish church Not the one I was actually looking for but I noticed it's the Holy Trinity Church I'm not gonna take you inside because there's a service on which is you know, it's Sunday So that's fair enough and it's nice to see it's being used in city old phone boxes So this is the centre up there There is an old market hall which is being used as an ice rink and has quite a lot of music So I won't show you that and then looking down this street here. That's quite an interesting variety of architecture The railway station at Warrington Central is that way but first we're gonna go that way towards that very brutal looking 1960s building to Find the main parish church This architecture is a real variety of different buildings and bit of a mishmash It's a nice mishmash of architecture. A lot of glazed bricks So seeing the town centre, it's not a huge amount more to show you here I'm gonna find the parish church. You probably won't go in because it probably will be a service But we're certainly going to have a look from the outside So I've now walked out of Warrington Town Centre Heading for this church but before we get there, something else I want to show you This little cottage here is from Tudor Cottage This is where Oliver Cromwell lodged here and saved me explaining it. I'm just going to show you the thing There's a middle I didn't know about this, I've only just discovered it but he actually lodged here And this is where he sent his dispatches to Parliament to let people impressed and win it Warrington Know of the victory against King Charles army So quite a nice little local fact from this little Tudor Cottage We're going to now carry on past Sainsbury's to the main parish church So be there in a moment So we've made it to the church This pub's called Ring O Bells which is quite an appropriate name for a pub next to a church with such a lofty spire This is St Elfin's church, it's the main parish church of Warrington And it's gothic revival so it's not really really old, it was completed in 1867 So a year before Warrington Banky railway station opened And looking up at that spire, the spire is 281 feet high It's really quite high for church spire, it's not the tallest church The Catholic church in Preston is taller I can see there is a service on the inside so I won't take you inside As I said it is Sunday so that's what you expect of a church on a Sunday So I'm not bothered if I can't go inside, I know it would be nice to show you But maybe another day we'll come back and have a closer look I just have a walk around the outside, it's a lovely church I'd love to go up that spire, I bet you get really nice views even from the balcony up there So talking of heights of churches and cathedrals, to try and give you an idea To put it into perspective with some cathedral heights I know Salisbury Cathedral is 404 feet high, so this is getting on for three quarters of the height of Salisbury Cathedral Norwich Cathedral is 315 feet, so this spire is about around 30 feet shorter than Norwich Cathedral So it is quite high for a church spire It looks like this is an older part of the church Admittedly I haven't read up completely on all the history of the church But when it's completed in 1867 that must be the main name of the church For me, this looks like a much older part of the church So if anyone knows and wants to comment and tell me, then you're welcome to Just noticed some graves here, it's rather interesting It almost looks like those arches possibly come out of an earlier building Again, if you know more than I do on that comment, tell me You can just hear the organ playing Can you hear that? I don't have the cameras to get out I always love the sound of church bells I'm now going to walk over to Warrington Central Station Now I've shown you what I wanted to show you here And we're going to then jump on the train and go to Warrington West So I'm going to leave you with a nice view of St Elfinch Church So this now concludes my exploration of Warrington Town Centre We're almost at Warrington Central, this area here That's the bus station, or it's actually known as Warrington Interchange There's a 1960s building which I've mentioned earlier And now the station is a bit unusual, as you can see ahead is the bridge Well, the railway is behind that bridge, the bridge you can see Because there's cars going over, I was thinking that was the railway And I started seeing cars, I thought, oh, and now I realise that the railway is behind that So we're almost at Warrington Central Station now I haven't got to buy a ticket to Warrington West Because I have with me this, this is a Cheshire day ranger Now it's unusual, because last time I bought one of these It was one of those bigger, you know, the new wider, more sort of papery tickets Now it's back to the little, you know, what I know of as a, for me, a traditional ticket So that's interesting, also it says issue to mister I don't know if you can see that there First time I had to put my name on it, but I didn't have to this time So here we are, here's the, that's the railway bridge You can now see the railway bridge behind me, over there Going to bus station So I've got my ticket ready because, as I said, I've never done any of this before There might be ticket barriers And I've done this in previous videos It's very awkward trying to get through ticket barriers and make a video If you haven't got your ticket ready So we shall find out very soon Warrington Bank Key didn't have ticket barriers Oh that's interesting This bridge was, what do you mean by that? So yeah, let's find our way in to So there's a bit of a walk, if you ever did Sometimes I've suggested it as an interchange That you could interchange between Warrington Central, Warrington Bank Key You wouldn't really want to do that walk with luggage And so anyway, let's find out So here we are, here's the station So we've, oh yeah, it has got ticket barriers So it's a good job I've got my ticket ready So we're now in, yeah, making a video for YouTube Have a look, you'll be on it Alright, cool I'll just tell that gentleman who'll be on YouTube later So, we're going towards Liverpool Not sure when the train will be And it's the first for me to visit this station So this was the town's second station And after Warrington Bank Key where we started And this is on the line from Liverpool to Manchester But it's not that famous first line from Liverpool to Manchester Is that the train coming in now? It is, that's perfect timing The question is, does it stop at Warrington West? I don't think it will because it's an East Midlands train It doesn't say it's stopping at Warrington West So I won't get on that one but I'll let you see it So I've now got to wait for why I assume it'll be a Northern train Shame to like these bridges Anyway, I'm going to now wait for my train to arrive to Warrington West So here we are, we're at Warrington Central This is town's second station, opened 1873 Two Northern 150s Basically forming the reverse of the service we're going to get So the train we get will probably be a 150 But it could be any other type of sprinter Might even be a pacer, might one the new trains So let's just watch the 150s depart And then I'll, if you may have noticed Or they're both 150s, they both have different fronts The one on the front, 150205, was a 150 slash 2 There's a door on the front, one on the back, 150124 Doesn't have a door on the front Just there, there is the Warrington signal box I don't even see the signal leaning out Now this is, I think this is really quite a nice Asphatically pleasing looking railway station I think it's going to be very different to Warrington West When we get there, which is approximately a mile that way So we're just going to wait for our train now To take us to Warrington West, the town's newest railway station Which only opened, as I said, a few weeks ago We're now travelling through the suburbs of Warrington On our way to Warrington West We've just gone over to West Coast Mainline You may have seen a few weeks ago About the time the station opened I published another video, because I came this way Before the station opened, a week before And I just filmed the view out the window And it was funny, because on the 150 It said, for some reason, it said Welcome to this first capital connect service I believe it's because some of the parts of 150 That is the Zankin Canal, I think If you want to come and confirm, you're welcome to So I believe some 150s had certain parts That came off 319s, and that's how the first capital connect Got on there, which one of us sort of, that's really strange Because first capital connect has been replaced By Thameslink a few years ago So we're now probably just going to come into Warrington West I'm hoping they'll make an announcement And we shall see what we see of the new railway station I'm really looking forward to it, it's always nice To see investment in the railways More railway stations opening So these people who live here They've had quite a long walk Or drive, or bus journey to Any of the other Warrington Central stations So it's nice now that They've got their own local railway station So we must be near there soon Looks like there's quite a lot of new housing in this area A lot of the houses I can see Look like they were built in the last 10 years So we're slowing down, we've been slowing down for a while I'm not exactly sure where it is But it's, you know, along here somewhere I think the brakes are going on So we must, yeah, I can see It's hard to show you about Because the way the seats are arranged Just one thing I don't like about 150s I do like them, because you know They're quite nice old units Here we are, we're here We've arrived at Warrington West So this is my first visit to this Brand new railway station The point pressing is to the lights So here we are, Warrington West There's quite a few people using it That's good to see that There's people getting on and off Sometimes you go to these new stations It takes a while for people to kind of get used to the fact They have a new train service So I'm glad to see, you know, people here They must be delighted that they've now got The railway station on their doorstep This train I went on, both the 150s Didn't have doors on the front So we're on 146 And the front half was 151.2 So, what's the 150th part? Interestingly, the station building's over there Now I recognise that from the pictures I've already seen So, I wonder why they set it back From the track Again, if you know Then do comment and tell me I've got a bit of time here To wait for my next train Because when I finish here I'm going somewhere else to make another video So let's find our way out of this station Obviously it's got lifts And everything has pretty much all new railway stations There's a nice sign down there It says Warrington West station Warrington West railway station is now complete So, first impressions Any one thing I might say No, I suppose I think there should be an entrance here But then if you actually have a look It's not overly necessary Because there is a bridge just there So it's not really At times, you know, railway stations You're really near to say an area there But you've got a long way to walk round to it So, we can go for a walk over this We come out here This is interesting So, this is a big forecourt I can already see there's no ticket barriers So, I've got my Cheshire Day Ranger ready Whether they ever do a barrier check There, I don't know And whether they will put ticket barriers In the future because we are completely fenced in So, let's have a look in the new ticket office Quite an interesting building, I like it So, here we are inside the new ticket office Quite a big room to wait I'll show you where in Warrington we are You are here So, we've come Started at Warrington Bank Key This is the freight only line I said about We walk through the town centre to Warrington Central We just travelled all the way here to Warrington West We're not that far away from Sanford Station It's only 12 minute walk I'm not going to do that today So, let's just go out the front and see what we have So, it looks like it's kind of a big park and ride station For the local area That's a cool bench, I like that Look at that Royal Air Forces Station version It's got outlines of various different aeroplanes That's really nice And if I stand back You have a look at the station It's quite an interesting style of architecture How it's got sort of curved RSJs That go from grounds to the ground Supporting the station in between It's pretty much all new housing I can see around here As soon as I've said it, I want to go over that bridge And just see It looks like this was a road once But it's now public right away Pretty cheap parking If you ever come here by car Look at that, £1 for 24 hours So, if you want to get to Manchester or Liverpool And you don't want to drive into the centre Then this is quite a good place to come and park Clearly, which is a facility which doesn't exist Before this railway station opens So, that's really good to see See, I think once upon a time It was a fully country lane for Warrington Group And this was just the bridge over the railway Now it's become a pedestrian Nice bridge We'll have a look at the station From here And then we'll have a look over both sides The nice straight track looking towards Liverpool Let's go across the road And finish the video over there So, I've really enjoyed my morning in Warrington Visited all three of the town railway stations From the oldest to this brand new one And I'm impressed a lot, Warrington I'll have to come back And perhaps another time We could go and have a look in the church Maybe that we didn't have a look in Because it was Sunday So, from outside Warrington West Station Thank you very much for watching Please do feel free to comment, like, subscribe Share, tell your friends, etc Tell anyone you think might like my videos Thank you very much for watching And goodbye Is it me? Or does it look like this station Is made out of giant Lego?