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Manchester ARTICLES

All change on Metrolink

19th May 2009

There’s good news and bad news for Metrolink passengers. For the next five months, city centre tram stops are being closed as work begins to replace the track. Meanwhile, construction starts on the new line out to East Manchester.

If you’re used to jumping on and off a tram in the city centre then you’re going to have to change your travel plans.

Tram stops at Shude Hill, Market Street, Piccadilly Gardens, Piccadilly Station and Mosley Street are all closed from 6 April 2009 to allow new track to be laid.

It’s the latest phase in a £100 million pound upgrade of the Metrolink network to make journeys smoother, quieter and more reliable.
Changes

From April 6, Metrolink services will run:

• every 12 mins from Altrincham to St Peter's Sq (double trams)
• every 12 mins from Eccles to St Peter's Sq
• every 12 mins from Bury to Victoria (double trams)
Bus services

There will be replacement bus services linking Piccadilly, Victoria and G-Mex as well as some suggested walking routes. See map for details.

Metrolink say the city centre track - now 16 years old - is the most heavily used on the tram network with some sections being crossed 250 times a day.

But while it’s considered essential work, it’s yet another period of major disruption to the network.

Recent years have seen closures of the Altrincham - Bury line and between Piccadilly Station and Portland Street to allow track replacement.

Philip Purdy, GMPTE’s Metrolink Director: "We're investing heavily in Metrolink so that it meets our passengers' needs - and we'll do everything we can to keep disruption to a minimum."
Going East

On the same day as the city centre closures, work starts on a new Metrolink extension heading out to East Manchester.

The four-mile extension will include eight new stops (Pollard St, Holt Town, Sportcity, New East, Clayton, Edge Lane, Cemetery Road and Droylsden) and will run past the City of Manchester stadium and the Velodrome, mostly along existing streets.

The route is due to open in spring 2012, with trams running to and from Manchester every six minutes and is part of the £600m expansion of the Metrolink network.

Source: BBC