An historic signal box used to control the railway line is to close. Since 1876, the controller based in the elevated building in Huncoat has been responsible for manning the levers which determined the routes trains would take.
But as the levers have been replaced by switches which can be operated by computer systems, Network Rail has taken the decision to close the building on Station Road entirely along with four other boxes along the East Lancashire line.
The Huncoat signal box is currently used to operate the level crossing on Station Road.
Campaigner Alan Benson, who is secretary of the Save The East Lancashire Line Association, said the closures were a sign of the times.
He said: “It is something we were told was going to happen ages ago, so we knew it was coming. As technology advances these sorts of things happen.
“We just hope that the people who work there will be able to find work elsewhere.”
