Government funding has been granted to build two new Metrolink stops - Queens Road and Abraham Moss - on the Bury line. Transport Minister Sadiq Khan announced the funding on Tuesday as part of £30m million allocated to new transport projects. A Manchester Evening News broadcast of the news can be viewed here. Also, plans to add a tram line from Rochdale to Manchester via Cross Street in Manchester City Centre, as a means of bypassing Piccadilly Gardens and St Peter's Square, have been sent to government officials for approval. Please scroll down to read more on both events.
New tram stops
Following news of new tram stops being introduced in Oldham previously, new stops are to now be added in Bury. Councillor Keith Whitmore, chair of the Greater Manchester Integrated Transport Authority Chair (GMITA), said of the new tram stops: “This is fantastic news for people living in North Manchester. These new stops will open up transport opportunities to thousands more households in the area.”
Council leader Sir Richard Leese has said that the new stops should be in use at the same time as the wider Metrolink expansion, which is due to be up and running by 2012. Commuting times from Abraham Moss to Victoria will be five minutes by tram. The Queens Road stop will be located close to Collyhurst and the journey time to Piccadilly Gardens will be seven minutes. The new stops will open up Metrolink services to 34% more people living within 400 metres of a stop.
2nd city tram line
A 'business case' has been sent to the Department for Transport (DfT) for a second city-centre tram crossing to help cope with the hundreds of extra services which will become available when the `Big Bang' extensions are built to Rochdale, Oldham, Ashton and the airport. Transport bosses believe that the current Metrolink line from Victoria to Piccadilly and Manchester Central does not have enough capacity to cope with an extended system, so they would want a new line to bypass Piccadilly Gardens and St Peter's Square.
A new map of the extended Metrolink network showing the new stops can be viewed here. A map showing the proposed 2nd line between Manchester Central and Victoria through the city centre can be viewed here.
Thursday, 6 August 2009
New tram stops in Bury and proposed 2nd city line in Manchester City Centre
Share this post:
0
comments
Thursday, 18 June 2009
Could Oldham get two tram lines running through the town centre?
GMPTE bosses and local businesses are holding talks on how to make the most of taking trams into Oldham. Work has already started to convert the Oldham Loop railway line to Metrolink by autumn 2011 with the existing train stations at Werneth and Oldham Mumps being converted into tram stations, and other new tram stops being built between Manchester Victoria and Rochdale (click here to view the tram route). However, last month's announcement that a new Metrolink line will run through Oldham town centre itself, creating 6 tram stops instead of the initial 2, has forced a rethink, as it could result in trams running parallel through Oldham. Therefore, people could be able to catch one tram into Oldham town centre or a different one to send them round the outskirts and towards Manchester or Rochdale more quickly (as this route map here shows).
Oldham Council leader, Councillor Howard Sykes, explains the problem: “If we had both [lines], one would assume some trams would go round the town centre and some would go through. It means the existing site of the railway line is kept, while the original plans were that it would be given up”.
Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Executive will now discuss with local businesses over the new few weeks whether there's a future for both lines or should they scrap the 'outer' line (Oldham Werneth to Oldham Mumps) plan when the town centre line is built. There are 3 proposals which will be discussed:
1. create a new ‘Mumps’ stop between Bell Street and Brook Street, next to Mumps Bridge, which would enable the two lines to co-exist. An artist’s impression of the new Metrolink bridge at Mumps roundabout can viewed here:
2. create a new stop at the Rhodes Bank end of Union Street which would serve the town centre line
3. refurbish the existing Mumps train station
A planning application will be submitted next month for a new ‘Mumps’ stop between Bell Street and Brook Street. Once this application has been submitted, there will be a formal public consultation regarding the issue.
Share this post:
0
comments
Friday, 15 May 2009
Trams to run through Oldham town centre
Despite failing to gain funding from the government following a resounding ‘no’ vote in the Congestion Charge referendum in Greater Manchester in December, Great Manchester is to now get a £1.4bn transport fund from the Association of Greater Manchester Authorities (AGMA) and government, in order to carry out a number of currently stalled transport projects across the region, as well as creating 21,000 new jobs.
This funding will now help with the following transport projects:
- Further Metrolink (tram line) extensions to Manchester Airport, East Didsbury, Ashton-under-Lyne and the town centres of Oldham and Rochdale, as well as a second city crossing between Victoria and G-Mex. View the full Metrolink map here
- A Stockport bypass linking the airport and the A6
- The Mottram by-pass
- A guided busway between Leigh and Manchester
- The Wigan inner-relief road
- Increased park-and-ride facilities across Greater Manchester
- A `cross-city' bus package, with better and more frequent routes through the city centre
- Bus station improvements in Bolton and Altrincham
The new funding will see 6 tram stations being created in Oldham town centre, instead of the original 2 at Mumps and Werneth- Mumps, Oldham Central (Clegg Street), Union Street, King Street, Westwood and Werneth.
Oldham Council Leader Howard Sykes has explained how the £84 million funding given to Oldham will reap many benefits for the town, “This has the potential to transform Oldham into an aspirational 21st century town and send out the message that we are open for business. This is about creating an infrastructure for those studying in Oldham to find work across Greater Manchester, giving them easy access to work areas across and within the city region.” The Metrolink extensions will help to link up the key higher and further educational establishments in the town - Oldham College, Oldham Sixth Form College, University Centre Oldham, and the planned Regional Science Centre - and therefore provide students with a transport network that will help them exploit their skills.
A broadcast of the above news can be viewed below
Share this post:
0
comments
