THE next stage of work to bring a disused platform at Bolton Railway Station back into use will begin in the coming days.

Building work has already started to reinstate platform five at the station and the next phase of the project involves reconstructing the station’s existing platforms and canopies.

The upgrades are part of Network Rail's project to improve services and make the most effective use of new electric trains, which are scheduled to arrive from December 2017.

Services will continue to run as normal when the next phase of the work begins on Sunday.

Terry Strickland, area director for Network Rail said: “We are investing heavily in Bolton as part of our national Railway Upgrade Plan to provide passengers with the railway that will meet their needs for decades to come as well as help boost the economy across the north of England.

“To deliver it, significant engineering is required to improve the track layout, rebuild platforms, cut back canopies and make space for new equipment to power electric trains through Bolton from December 2017.

“We are also reinstating platform five, which has been out of use since the early 1990s, to allow more trains to run between Manchester and Preston. The work is vital to modernising the railway and will help to create better, faster and more frequent journeys for passengers in Bolton.”

From Sunday, sections of platforms one and three will be fenced off to allow work to begin and this will mean changes to walking routes to platforms one, two and three. Passengers are advised to allow additional time and take extra care when using these platforms.

The platforms are being rebuilt in sections to allow the station to stay open and keep passengers on the move.

However, in order to complete major track and signalling upgrades, there will be some changes to train services in the summer.

Network Rail is confident that electrification work on the lines will be completed by the end of the year.

A spokesman said: “Work to electrify the line between Preston and Manchester is progressing well with the latest phase of work starting in the next few weeks.

"This includes work to install stanchions to carry the electric lines as well as the upgrade to Bolton station. This work will improve the overall experience for rail users and provide a modern interchange for train passengers, bus passengers and cyclists.

“We are confident that the project will be delivered on time by December 2017, which is the date that Northern is planning to run their new electric trains from.”

Liam Sumpter, regional director for Northern, added: “We made a commitment to improve rail services for all customers, and the proposed improvements at Bolton – which are already taking shape following the introduction of the gatelines – are just one way in which we are delivering on that commitment.

“Of course, there is more work to be done and we are improving the carriages on our network, introducing new carriages and developing stations as part of a modernisation scheme that will, when complete, deliver a railway fit for the 21st century.”

The redevelopment will go hand-in-hand with multi-million pound plans to modernise Northern’s rail services, which include removing all pacer trains by 2020, and the new transport interchange that will be connected to the rail station by a 'skylink' bridge.