Preparations are underway in Sefton for the upcoming Aintree Grand National Festival that takes place from Thursday 3rd to Saturday 5th April.

People going to Aintree are being urged to take some time to consider their travel arrangements and take advantage of frequent trains getting to and from the racecourse.

Minimising Disruption

Sefton Council is working with partners to manage travel over the event’s three days. The aim is to help event goers to the right place at the right time, while minimising disruption to residents and local businesses as much as possible.

Merseyrail is running a special timetable for the three days. Trains will be running every 7½ minutes between Liverpool City Centre and Aintree station before and after the races.

You can find out more information on Merseyrail’s Grand National timetable on their website.

Shuttle Bus Service

A regular shuttle bus - service 922 - will be running directly from Elliot Street in Liverpool City Centre to Aintree racecourse.

Bus services 300, 310, and 345 run from Queen Square bus station and the Aintree area, but they will be affected by diversions during the Grand National Festival.

You can find details of the bus diversions here. please be aware that these will be on diversion.

A temporary taxi rank will be available on Park Lane, between the junctions on Bridle Road and Deltic Way, close to the racecourse.

Diversions and Closures

Some diversions, road closures and traffic management measures to ensure the safety of pedestrians are in place.

Melling Road from the junction at Aintree Lane to Seeds Lane from 7am on Wednesday 2nd April continuously until 10pm on Saturday 5th April.

A59 Ormskirk Road between Park Lane and the junction with Topham Drive from 4pm to 9pm on Thursday 3rd April to Saturday 5th April.

Park Lane between the junction at Bridle Road to A59 Ormskirk Road from 4pm to 9pm on Thursday 3rd April to Saturday 5th April.

You can use this link to find a map of road closures.

Local residents not attending the festival are advised to avoid the A59 Ormskirk road from Switch Island through to the Black Bull junction. Heavy traffic is expected on the A59 from 10am to 2pm. During the closure traffic will be diverted via Switch Island, Dunnings Bridge Road, Netherton Way and Southport Road.

A Sefton Council spokesperson said:

“Each year, the three-day Grand National Festival brings thousands of visitors to Sefton hosting national events.

“To help give them the best visit, we have worked with partners to put travel measures in place to reduce delays and to keep people safe, while at the same time minimising disruption for local residents.

“We encourage people attending the races to use Merseyrail who will be running a special Grand National timetable to make travel to Aintree station as easy as possible, with trains every 7½ minutes.

“When the races end there’s still plenty to get excited by in Sefton, including its beautiful 22-mile coastline. From where you can enjoy a stunning sunsets and the 100 iconic Iron Men of Crosby Beach.