I also saw and researched the image of the original Crow Nest Junction last week. It does not in fact show 2 quadruple track railways diverging. With the fast lines of the Pemberton loop on the south side of the formation through Hindley, it shows the double track line to Westhoughton and Bolton diverging from the fast lines and also the double track Dicconson Lane and Hilton House branch, one of 2 routes towards Chorley and Blackburn (the other being the L&NWR Boars Head and Red Rock line from the WCML) simultaneously diverging from the slow lines. Movements in all directions were possible, except there was no access from the Pemberton loop to Dicconson Lane and Hilton House unless there were additional crossovers west of Hindley station. There were never 4 tracks through Westhoughton. I had known 3 routes diverged at Crow Nest Junction but couldn’t for the life of me work out how they would be able to diverge immediately after each other. On a 4 track layout this is easily achieved through the use of 10 diamond crossings, compared to the present 1!
Even the replacement signal box sited on the fast line trackbed is no longer there. I don’t know when that went. What I want to know is whether expresses from Southport to Manchester Victoria that went fast via Atherton used the fast or slow lines through Hindley. I suppose it depends whether they stopped at Wigan Wallgate. I still can’t fathom the original layout at Lostock Junction or platform layout at Bolton, since there were 4 tracks from Lostock Junction to Bolton but not beyond. There were also fast avoiding lines through the middle of Bolton but were there also avoiding lines on the outside? Don’t ask me about Moses Gate goods loops!
In an old thread, @Springs Branch gave a date of 6 September 1965 for the closure of the fast lines, but that they were not lifted immediately and could be seen partially dismantled through the 1970s.
Was the Atherton line actually built as 4 tracks throughout and not quadrupled later? Following the reduction to 2, the slow lines were retained except through Atherton station where the 2 middle tracks were used until the late 1980s. The slow lines were retained at the Manchester end because only they had a connection with the branch from Agecroft Junction to Pendleton station until the opening of Salford Crescent, but the fast lines were not restored at that time. I can’t help thinking Atherton should be requadrupled to allow fast Wigan services to run that way instead of via Chat Moss.
