Liverpool Lime Street station opened on 15 August 1836.
Read on for some of the station’s highlights, from a huge upgrade to improved accessibility and – of course – Eurovision.
More seats for you
Five years ago, we carried out lots of work to give you more seats and more reliable journeys in and out of Lime Street.
Engineers replaced almost 2,000m of track, redesigned and lengthened platforms and built two new ones.
Meanwhile, we installed a new, digital-ready signalling system. We moved signalling control to centrally operated Manchester Rail Operating Centre, meaning better journeys and fewer delays thanks to faster decision making in a modern facility.
British Sign Language travel advice
Did you know that Liverpool Lime Street is one of our stations that gives travel announcements using British Sign Language?
We installed touchscreens in April so you can see signed travel information – an important part of our mission to make the railway more accessible.
We know rail travel can be daunting for some and we hope facilities like this help our passengers feel more confident about travelling by rail.
Find out more here.
Our mobility assistance team
Lime Street team member Sophie Harding appeared in our film about the station’s mobility assistance services.
Sophie and colleagues deal with lots of services and questions from passengers every day.
Sophie talks about how you can benefit from the team’s help here.
Eurovision celebrations
We welcomed thousands of Eurovision fans to the city of culture for the Eurovision Song Contest 2023 earlier this year in May.
One of our highlights was welcoming fans in true party style. There were drag queens, dancers, drummers and even roller-skating jellyfish at the station – organised by teaming up with Liverpool City Council.
A mini museum
You can also browse bits of history inside the mini museum. It opened in January 2019 in the waiting lounge.
It charts life at the station over the decades. You can still see a signal box panel diagram, an early 20th century railway trolley and lots more.
Historic workers’ hut
In 2018, we found a tiny house in the station’s cuttings. There was even a fireplace and an old kettle there used by worked to make tea.
It was built more than 100 years ago and we can only access it when trains aren’t running.
Preserving history
Have you seen the three stone slabs that formed part of the original platform surface?
The historic Yorkstone originally came from a local quarry more than 180 years ago. We took great care to preserve these slabs while carrying out lots of work between 2016 and 2018.
All three slabs are now engraved and displayed, serving as a reminder of the station’s rich heritage. Find out more.
Then there’s the long-lost Hornby plaque
The plaque marked the birthplace of the famous engineer and toy inventor Frank Hornby. He’s best-known for creating Meccano, Dinky cars and the Hornby Model Railway.
Many people thought the plaque was long lost after it disappeared in 1999. But it re-emerged almost 25 years later thanks to some nifty detective work between us and the Railway Heritage Trust, which brings old railway buildings and structures back into use.
You can now find the restored plaque in its rightful place inside the station.
