Regulator authorises third platform at Salford Crescent station

The Office of Rail and Road (ORR) has authorised the new 157m third platform, extended footbridge and lift at Salford Crescent station, a step the regulator said brings Network Rail's £21m scheme closer to opening.

The regulator issued the authorisation on 2 October 2026 and said the improvements would start to benefit passengers later this year.

It covers Platform 3, which has a canopy and seating, along with an extension to the existing footbridge and a new lift. ORR said a new gate line would also be installed next to the existing station building.

Steve Fletcher, deputy director, engineering and asset management at ORR, said: "This is an important step in getting the busy Salford Crescent station ready to open its new platform to help improve how passengers move through the station."

ORR said authorisation confirms that standards in areas such as health and safety, accessibility, environmental protection, reliability and availability have been met. The regulator said it worked with Network Rail and the wider project team through the process.

The decision appears on ORR's register of interoperability authorisations as "Salford Crescent 3rd Platform", for Network Rail's North West & Central Region. ORR is responsible for authorising infrastructure and rolling stock that are new or have had a major upgrade or renewal.

The scheme

Network Rail is investing £21m in the additional platform, with Kier as contractor.

According to Network Rail, Salford Crescent handled almost 1.2 million entries and exits in 2022/23, making it one of the busiest stations in Greater Manchester.

Network Rail said the extra platform would allow more trains to serve the station and give signallers more options to ease congestion through the area and the wider Manchester rail network.

Ben Porter, Network Rail sponsor, said in January 2025: "The new third platform at Salford Crescent station will mean signallers can better organise how trains move through the area."

The scheme also includes a new exit ticket gate line, which Network Rail said would improve passenger flow. A lift shaft structure was installed on the site of the new platform to provide step-free access, the infrastructure owner said in September 2025.

Construction timeline

Network Rail's project page says its team arrived on site over Christmas 2024 and that work began in March 2025.

Network Rail said signalling for the third platform would be tested and commissioned over the weekend of 13 and 14 September 2025, which Network Rail sponsor Francesca Cotgreave described at the time as a big milestone for the upgrade.

In October 2025 Network Rail said the work was 75% finished. Jonathan Moran, senior project manager at Kier, said then that the project had reached several milestones that brought the expected completion closer.

Network Rail's published completion dates have changed during the project. When it announced the scheme in October 2024, it said work would be complete in early 2026. Its October 2025 update gave spring 2026 for full completion.

The project page says lift works were due to complete in late July 2026.

What happens next

Network Rail's project page now says the third platform and new gate line will enter service and open to the public in autumn 2026, once construction work is completed.

Trains will start making scheduled stops at the third platform after the December 2026 National Rail timetable change, according to Network Rail.