As in previous years, on each day of this year’s Grand National Festival, Merseyrail will operate a special timetable with trains running every seven-and-a-half-minutes between Liverpool City Centre and Aintree station before the first race and after the end of the last race.

During the festival, which runs from Thursday, 13th of April until Saturday, 15th of April, Merseyrail aims to provide those attending with the best possible service.

The seven-and-a-half-minute service will run between Aintree and Liverpool Central/Moorfields stations before the races from approximately 11:00 to 14:00 and after the races from approximately 17:00 to 20:48.

During the festival, Northern line services will run to a slightly amended timetable, with some trains departing a few minutes earlier than normal. Anyone intending to travel during the festival should check the journey planner on Merseyrail’s website or the Merseyrail app to confirm their departure times before travelling.

Ormskirk line

• A normal 15-minute service will operate between Liverpool city centre and Ormskirk. However, to allow for the extra trains, Aughton Park and Town Green stations will have a 30-minute service.
• Between 16:30 and 21:00, trains to Liverpool will not call at Orrell Park station.

Southport line:

• Trains will run to a slightly amended 15-minute timetable..

Kirkby line:

• Between 10:00 and 21:00 some services will start and terminate at Sandhills.
• Passengers for Moorfields or Liverpool Central, or those making the return journey to Rice Lane, Fazakerley or Kirkby, may have to change at Sandhills.
• There will be no Northern Trains services from Kirkby to Wigan Wallgate, with trains replaced by a be a rail-replacement bus service, with the last bus leaving Kirkby station at 19:20 each evening.

Wirral line:

• All services will run to a normal timetable.

Passengers travelling to the festival from any Wirral line stations are advised to change at Moorfields for an Aintree-bound train.

Passengers are strongly advised to buy tickets in advance to help reduce queuing time on the day. They can be purchased in advance from any staffed Merseyrail station, or a Day Saver can be purchased online via the Merseyrail website. Any tickets bought via Trainline or other train operating companies’ websites must be printed at a Merseyrail ticket office before travel. Mobile tickets are not accepted on MEL services.

To welcome those using the rail network to attend the Grand National Festival a range of entertainment has been planned with some surprises in store. Merseyrail staff will also be available to hand out their famous flip-flops to anyone with sore feet after a long day at the races.

Suzanne Grant, Commercial Director at Merseyrail, said: “For many years Merseyrail has been proud to play a significant part in The Grand National Festival, helping to ensure thousands of festival-goers have a great experience. We are ready and excited to provide the same high level of service this year.

“An increased frequency on the timetable will ensure we get tens of thousands of attendees to and from Aintree quickly and comfortably. However, due to the sheer volume of people our trains and stations will still be very busy, so please be patient and check our website, app or social media before you travel.

“Once again, we will be providing our passengers with some fantastic entertainment to ensure they enjoy the Grand National Festival experience. And, as always, we will be distributing our famous flip-flops at the end of each day’s racing events to anyone whose feet need some respite.”