Construction work did not start straight away, being delayed by contractual negotiations until 1871. The route was of double track with 23 bridges. There were intermediate stations at and . The railways, but not the junction with the Birkenhead Railway, opened for goods traffic on 2 November 1874 and for passengers on 1 May 1875. The junction at Mickle Trafford was made in 1875 to enable traffic between the CLC and but it was not used due to a dispute. The CLC ran five trains in each direction daily between which was a MSJ&AR station and .