ROAD and rail chaos caused by a burst water main will last for up to six weeks, it has been confirmed.

Northern Rail says that roads around Moses Gate station in Farnworth could be shut for six weeks, after the burst pipe caused a bridge to collapse onto the railway below last Thursday.

No trains will run between Bolton and Manchester next week, and a reduced service will operate for another four weeks after that while major engineering works continue to repair the severely-damaged infrastructure.

The shutdown will mean huge frustration for commuters who have already endured a summer of transport problems, as well as parents taking their children to and from school once term starts next month.

There have been no train services running on the Bolton to Manchester line since August 12 due to engineering works at Bolton station, but the track had been due to re-open on Bank Holiday Monday.

Trains will continue to run between Bolton and Clitheroe, while Network Rail's electrification upgrades at the town centre station are expected to be completed on schedule.

Cllr David Chadwick, Bolton Council's cabinet member for transport, said: "Unfortunately, this is a situation that can't be helped.

"There is obviously some severe damage that has been caused by this burst water main.

"This repair work has to be done to make the road and the railway safe again.

"It is a major, major headache from a civil engineering standpoint. I know this will be a massive inconvenience for people, but we are working hard with Network Rail, United Utilities, and the train operators to get is resolved as quickly as possible.

"We are fortunate that nobody was hurt in the collapse, it could have been far worse than it is."

Jeff Davies, chairman of the Bolton Rail Users Group, said: "This is a most unfortunate occurrence which we could have done without.

"It doesn't look to me like it will delay the electrification of the line, but it will cause a lot more inconvenience for railway users.

"We should have a great deal of sympathy for the people of Farnworth, whose daily lives, businesses, and travel will be much more severely disrupted."

Trains will still run from Bolton to Blackburn and Clitheroe from Tuesday August 29 to Thursday August 31, but from Blackburn only on Monday, August 28.

Andy Morgan, senior sponsor for Network Rail, said: “We are working round the clock to repair the damaged bridge and get train customers and road-users on the move as normal through this area.

“Repairing the water-damaged bridge is a complex engineering challenge requiring a bespoke design.  “We are working closely with Bolton Council, Transport for Greater Manchester and United Utilities to safely carry out the repairs so the railway line and the road can be reopened as quickly as possible.”

Rob Warnes, performance and planning director for Northern, added: “We are working alongside Network Rail to keep our passengers on the move through Bolton, with a fleet of rail replacement buses.

"We advise all customers to check before they travel to make sure they have the most up to date information via the Northern website.”

Passengers are being urged to plan their journey ahead and check before they travel at nationalrail.co.uk