The tunnel has been proposed as a solution to improve the city’s railway network
Inside Liverpool’s disused Wapping Tunnel(Image: Chris Iles/LMRT)
A hidden tunnel in the heart of Liverpool could transform the city’s transport network. Thousands walk or drive past the brick wall on the roundabout that connects Park Lane with Jamaica Street in Liverpool city centre without giving it a second thought.
But you can find out what the wall is hiding if you look from above. In aerial shots, you will see a small section of the 200-year-old Wapping Tunnel, the first underground rail tunnel ever built below a city. It ran from Edge Hill to the old Park Lane goods station, between Wapping and Park Road in what’s now the Baltic Triangle and was used to transport goods across the city.
The station was demolished in 1965 but the tunnel entrances can still be seen off Kings Dock Street and near Edge Hill Station, in addition to the brick wall and a ventilation shaft on Grenville Street South. The history of the tunnel was documented last year by Alex Brewster, who runs a TikTok channel called Living Liverpool Tour.
Alex, 42, from Crosby, told the ECHO previously: “I’ve known it’s been that tunnel for years, I just haven’t made a video about it. I used to work fairly close by. Originally I assumed it was part of the Northern Line connection but it’s too far towards the water.”
Alex believes the reopening of the tunnel could be very beneficial to the city’s transport network. He said: “It’s quite logical that, if we needed more train infrastructure, we would have it underground.
A wall on Jamaica Street which is one of the last signs of the disused tunnel(Image: Andrew Teebay Liverpool Echo)
“If you think about how Liverpool is now, there’s not a need for a goods yard but there is the arena, the Baltic, the Liverpool ONE area. All of that served by a station, running to the Wavertree/Edge Hill side – that doesn’t currently exist. It could work as a park ride at the end of the M62, getting people down to the arena on a gig day.”
In 2016, a study commissioned by Merseytravel looked into whether the tunnel could reopen to connect the Northern and City Lines together, along with the possible creation of a new station along the route to serve the city’s Knowledge Quarter. The report said Wapping Tunnel was in good condition, although it has suffered flooding in places.
In the most recent update on the tunnel last year, a spokesperson for Merseytravel confirmed the tunnel could be reopened but added there were currently no plans to do so. The spokesperson said: “There’s not really much more to add on top of that 2016 survey. The tunnel is protected for future use, but at the moment there’s no funding committed to it and no immediate plans around it.
Park Lane railway goods station in November 1965. Park Lane was the world’s first goods terminus on the Liverpool and Manchester Railway serving the south end Liverpool Docks. The station was opened in 1830. Its initial name was Wapping Station. Pictured, looking down towards a section of Park Lane railway goods station, the tunnel on the left leads into the long tunnel(Image: Mirrorpix)
“Obviously, there’s a lot of development happening on the Merseyrail network. There is the new Headbolt Lane station. The mayor (Steve Rotheram) has committed to Merseyrail For All, trying to expand the rail network to reach parts of the city and the region that it hasn’t previously.”
The spokesperson added that any proposed developments including new train stations and rail links would have to be reviewed, with the protected status of the tunnel giving the travel authority “opportunities and options for the future”. When contacted for an update this week, Merseytravel confirmed there had been no further updates about the tunnel’s status.
A ventilation shaft for the tunnel on Grenville Street South(Image: Andrew Teebay Liverpool Echo)
An underground city centre tunnel could be a key part of Liverpool’s railway infrastructure in the coming years as local leaders look to transform Liverpool Central Station. The ECHO has previously reported on ambitions by the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority (CA) for a major new transport hub in central Liverpool as part of the plans for the new high speed line between the two cities.
Plans are in place to rework the current city centre hubs to both accommodate new high speed lines and to relieve network capacity issues both at Liverpool Lime Street and Central Station. The CA wants to address the capacity issues at the hugely busy Liverpool Central, while also looking to create a ‘once-in-a-generation’ opportunity to redefine the wider area around the station and deliver ‘transformational place-based regeneration.’
The area where the station sits includes Renshaw Street and Ranelagh Street. The ECHO understands that the so-called ‘dream’ vision for city region leaders is to create an expanded Liverpool Central station and associated wider development of the gateway but to link it to Lime Street, potentially via an underground tunnel.
There is also a belief that an expanded central could potentially take some regional services away from Lime Street, freeing up the main station for the high speed Northern Powerhouse lines that have been promised by the government. Meanwhile, the old St James Station on the Northern Line is set to be re-opened as Liverpool Baltic in late 2027.