To help fans travelling to Everton’s new Hill Dickinson Stadium for a historic double-header, Merseyrail will run extra train services for the third and final test event on Saturday, 9th August.

To help the event run smoothly, Merseyrail is working alongside Everton FC, Liverpool City Region Combined Authority, and Liverpool City Council.

The nearest Merseyrail station to the new stadium is Sandhills, which will be the main stop for fans travelling by train, where a new second entrance and pedestrian footbridge are currently under construction and are planned to be completed and ready for the test event.

To accommodate the large number of fans attending the event, trains will run at 15-minute intervals on the Southport, Ormskirk, Hunts Cross, and Headbolt Lane lines before and after the event, and all available four and eight-car trains will be in service.

On the Southport line, there will be some changes to the normal timetable between 10:00 and 20:00, with Liverpool-bound services arriving and departing at different times to the normal timetable. The Merseyrail website journey planner provides updated train times, which fans should check before travelling.

Alternatives to Sandhills are Moorfields and Bank Hall stations, both within a 27-minute walk of the stadium, and will avoid the expected congestion at Sandhills.

On the Wirral line, trains will run to a normal timetable throughout the day. Fans can reach Sandhills by alighting at Moorfields and catching any Headbolt Lane, Southport, or Ormskirk line service. Alternatively, walking time to the stadium is 25 minutes from the Old Hall Street exit at Moorfields. After the event, from 19:30 onwards, extra services will supplement the Wirral line’s usual 30-minute frequency.

“As supporters adjust to new matchday travel routines, Merseyrail remains committed to doing everything possible to keep services running smoothly and make journeys to and from Hill Dickinson Stadium as easy as possible. We’ll be providing a 15-minute service before and after the event, and our dedicated team will be out on the network helping customers get to where they need to be. Like other major football stadiums across the UK, Sandhills station will be extremely busy on matchdays. Customers can help us, to help them, by planning ahead, allowing extra time for journeys, and considering alternative routes in case of unexpected disruption.”

Neil Grabham, Managing Director at Merseyrail