Mauldeth Road railway station (known as Mauldeth Road for Withington until 1974) is a suburban railway station serving the Ladybarn area of Manchester, England. It is the last station before Manchester Piccadilly on the Styal Line and was electrified in 1959. The station sits on the Styal Line to Manchester Airport, one of the most congested lines on the national rail network. It has been served by a half-hourly stopping service from Manchester Airport/Crewe to Manchester Piccadilly. Between May 2018 and December 2022, services operated on a skip-stop basis at irregular intervals to increase capacity on the line with a semi-fast service to Liverpool. From December 2022 the timetable reverted similar to pre-May 2018 with half-hourly stopping services; one terminating at Manchester Piccadilly and the other continuing onto Liverpool Lime Street. History The station opened in 1909, south of Longsight (Slade Lane Junction), as Mauldeth Road for Withington. It was renamed Mauldeth Road on 6 May 1974 and now serves the Manchester-Crewe (via Manchester Airport) rail route, used by Northern for stopping services to Manchester Airport. Its coal sidings closed in the 1960s, along with its original platform buildings on the up (southbound) side. The remaining wooden ticket office, on the down platform, burned down on Bonfire Night in 1986; thereafter the ticket office was a small prefabricated unit at the bottom of the station approach. It caters mainly for commuter traffic, being electrified at 25 kV AC overhead, and is used by EMU traffic. Some evening services are operated by TransPennine Express with DMUs. 2006 redevelopment As part of a £12 million station modernisation programme on the Manchester Airport Line, re-building work on Mauldeth Road railway station commenced in autumn 2006. Network Rail were able to keep the station operational for most of the time by demolishing the existing platforms in small parts and using temporary platforms. There was a temporary footbridge spanning the platforms while the pedestrians' access ramp to the northbound platform was out of use during renovation; the footbridge offered a vantage point for views over Manchester. As part of the re-building work new steel platforms, modern waiting shelters, new lighting and access ramps were constructed with work completed by June 2007. Recent developments Following extensive redevelopment of the station in 2006, passenger numbers doubled from approximately 148,000 to 323,000 in the five years between 2007 and 2012. The portakabin ticket office, used since the late