Timetable Chaos

I'm writing this early on Friday afternoon, and I don't know what the train service at Huyton will be tomorrow.

As of 13:20 today, my timetable database, National Rail's web site, Open Train Times and Real Time Trains all agree that we have a normal Saturday service tomorrow.

On the other hand, Northern Rail's web site and Northern Rail posters on Huyton Station show that there are no trains via St Helens Central with an hourly bus service running between Huyton and Wigan.  Liverpool to Blackpool trains are diverted via Newton.

To me, the replacement timetable looks like a Sunday one, so my guess is that someone at Northern has misread their calendar, but who knows?  Even if it is just a minor error on the date, what if Northern have rostered their staff accordingly?

Actually, on further examination, the replacement timetable looks very much like the plan for this coming Sunday before the decision was announced last Friday to close the line to Earlestown as well as to Wigan.

Hopefully, I'll be able to update this report with solid confirmation before too long...

Update: 14:35 Northern Rail's Twitter team initially confirmed buses but, when I questioned them a little harder, apologised and said trains as normal.  I await a web site update and the removal of the posters at Huyton without much hope.  My first ever tweets!

I think that's about as solid a confirmation as we're going to get, until the 05:32 Liverpool to Wigan turns left at Huyton Junction tomorrow morning.  Or doesn't.

Update: Sunday  For the historical record, I travelled on a 'normal service' train to Wigan via St Helens Central on Saturday morning.