Due to the huge increase of passangers to the small 1830 Crown Street passanger station a new larger station was needed nearear the city center, so a site was purchased at Lime Street and work started on the 1,811 meter twin track tunnel in 1832 and was complete by 1836, the tunnel was a hugh engineering project and was cut through solid sandstone by hand.

 

Lime Street station opened and Crown Street station closed to passangers, there was many probems with smoke in the tunnel and after various accidents in the tunnel and with the increase in railway traffic it was decided to demolish the tunnel and open it up into 4 track cuttings, work started on this in 1880 and was complete by 1882, the original Lime Street station was expanded, the only part of the original 1832 tunnel is a short 50 yard section at current Edge Hill station and is the oldest tunnel still in use today, the 2 smaller tunnels at current Edge Hill station either side of the original 1832 tunnel where built in 1880 when lines where expanded to 4 tracks and Edge Hill station added 2 more platforms.