Blackpool branch lines 2 miles of the M55 also occupy the former trackbed, until the Blackpool North line travels under the motorway at the point where the lines used to merge. The electrification of the Manchester to Blackpool North route was announced in December 2009. The main work of piling etc. to accomplish this commenced in early 2017. Bridgeworks along the route to raise and rebuild those that had insufficient clearance for overhead wires was completed first. Services over both the Blackpool South and Blackpool North branches temporarily ceased on 11 November 2017 to allow the track layout at Blackpool North and Kirkham
Marton, Blackpool Marton, Blackpool Marton is a settlement on the coastal plain of the Fylde in Lancashire, England, most of which is now part of the seaside town of Blackpool. Marton, which consisted of Great Marton, Little Marton, Marton Fold and The Peel, was originally part of the parish of Poulton-le-Fylde, before the development of Blackpool as a resort. Great Marton and Little Marton were collectively listed in the Domesday Book of 1086 as "Meretun". The name usually means "farmstead by a pool", derived from the Old English words "mere" and "tūn". Its area was estimated in that survey to be six