Major repairs are set to be carried out on a cracked rail on the Metrolink in Manchester city centre – with no trams operating between two busy stops.
Trams will not be running between Victoria and Exchange Square due to ‘complicated’ rail repairs ‘until further notice’, Metrolink confirmed yesterday. Engineers recently discovered a cracked rail on the approach to Victoria station, which forms part of a crossing linking Victoria to Exchange Square and St Peter’s Square.
Initially, temporary service changes were introduced so that trams could continue to operate safely. However, further investigation of the rail revealed that more permanent repairs are not possible with the track in situ, due to the crack being close to a crossing between two tracks, Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) said.
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The section of track will now have to be removed to establish whether it can be repaired or needs to be fully replaced, which could take several months to complete. Though there is currently no ‘clear timeframe’ for how long the repairs will take, Metrolink has announced several changes to services over this coming days.
Below you can find the full details and everything you need to know if you plan to use the tram from today (Thursday), over the weekend and into next week.
Tuesday, January 16 to Friday, January 19
To ensure that trams can continue to operate safely, from the start of service on Tuesday, January 16, there will be changes to and from Altrincham, Bury and Manchester Airport.
- The Altrincham-Bury service and the Manchester Airport-Victoria service will operate via Exchange Square only.
- The Bury-Piccadilly service will continue to operate via Market Street and Shudehill.
There are no other planned changes to tram services until end of service on Friday, January 19. Customers on affected services wishing to travel to Market Street and Shudehill should change to a Piccadilly bound tram from Platform A at Victoria.
Alternatively, customers can walk or wheel between stops. A walking map of Metrolink stops in Manchester city centre can be found here.
Saturday, January 20
Additional works will take place at Victoria on Saturday, January 20 and Sunday 21.
This means that from the start of service on Saturday, no trams will operate into Victoria from either Exchange Square or Market Street and Shudehill to enable additional engineering works to take place. This section of track will have to be removed to establish whether it can be repaired or needs to be fully replaced.
As a result, there will be changes for trams to and from Altrincham, Bury, East Didsbury, Rochdale, Manchester Airport and Trafford Park.
- All trams from Bury and Rochdale will operate every 15 minutes to Victoria, with additional double trams on both lines.
- All trams from Altrincham will operate to Piccadilly (after 6.30pm trams from Altrincham will operate to Etihad Campus via Piccadilly).
- All trams from East Didsbury will operate to Exchange Square.
- Trams from Manchester Airport will operate to Deansgate-Castlefield.
- Trams from the Trafford Centre will operate to Cornbrook.
Replacement buses will operate all day between Victoria and Piccadilly. Customers who wish to travel between Victoria and Piccadilly in either direction or access Market Street and Shudehill stops should board the replacement bus service.
Stops towards Piccadilly:
- Victoria Bus Stop NK on Corporation Street;
- Shudehill Bus Stop NZ on High Street; and,
- Piccadilly Gardens Bus Stop S.
Stops towards Victoria:
- Piccadilly Rail Station Bus Stop D on Fairfield Street;
- Piccadilly Gardens Bus Stop R; and,
- Shudehill Bus Stop NN.
Alternatively, customers can walk or wheel between stops.
Sunday, January 21
The network-wide shutdown and Ashton line engineering works on Sunday, January 21 will continue to go ahead as planned alongside the additional works at Victoria. No trams will operate before 9am, and during this time there will be no dedicated bus replacement service or ticket acceptance in place.
Trams will begin to leave the depot after 9am and will operate at a 15-minute frequency, however it will not be until 10.30am before service is resumed on most lines. On-stop display screens and public announcement systems may also take a little time to return to normal once tram services resume.
As a result of both the planned works and additional works at Victoria, there will be changes for trams to Altrincham, Bury, East Didsbury, Rochdale, Eccles, Manchester Airport and Trafford Park.
- Trams from Bury and Rochdale will operate to Victoria.
- Trams from Altrincham and Eccles via MediaCityUK will operate to Piccadilly Gardens.
- Trams from East Didsbury will operate to Exchange Square.
- Trams from Manchester Airport will operate to Deansgate-Castlefield.
- Trams from the Trafford Centre will operate to Cornbrook.
There will be no trams between Ashton-under-Lyne and Piccadilly Gardens. Replacement buses will operate after 9am between Victoria to Piccadilly and Ashton-under-Lyne to Piccadilly Gardens.
The same replacement buses as of Saturday will run between Victoria and Piccadilly.
Replacement buses between Ashton-under-Lyne and Piccadilly Gardens will be available to board at the following locations:
- Piccadilly Gardens Bus Stop Q
- Piccadilly Rail Station Bus Stop
- New Islington Bus Stop F
- Holt Town Bus Stop A
- Velopark Bus Stop E
- Clayton Hall Bus Stop B
- Edge Lane Bus Stop C
- Cemetery Road Bus Stop A
- Droylsden Bus Stop B
- Audenshaw Bus Stop B
- Ashton Moss Bus Stop D
- Ashton West Bus Stop C
- Ashton-under-Lyne Interchange
Bus operating times:
First bus:
8.50am – Ashton-under-Lyne to Piccadilly Gardens
9.37am – Piccadilly Gardens to Ashton-under-Lyne
Last bus:
11.22pm – Piccadilly Gardens to Ashton-under-Lyne
12.05am – Ashton-under-Lyne to Piccadilly Gardens
From Monday, January 22
From the start of service on Monday, January 22, tram services will return to normal except for East Didsbury and Rochdale trams which will not call at Exchange Square until further notice. Both the East Didsbury-Rochdale Town Centre and the East Didsbury-Shaw and Crompton services will operate via Market Street, Shudehill and Victoria.
If you usually travel to Exchange Square stop, you can get off the tram at Victoria. Whilst service pattern changes are updated, on-stop passenger information displays at Market Street, Shudehill, Exchange Square and Victoria will be showing incorrect information.
Passengers are urged to check the destination blinds on the trams for the correct information. Before making a journey, travellers are urged to check the latest tram departure times and TfGM’s travel alerts hub for the latest information.
Danny Vaughan, TfGM’s Head of Metrolink, said: “Providing a safe and reliable service for our customers is our number one priority, and that is why we acted quickly to put in place service changes. Unfortunately, the damage to the cracked rail and its location on a crossing means the job to repair it is complicated.
“While we currently have no clear timeframe for how long the work will take, everyone involved is fully committed to completing the works as quickly as possible for the benefit of our passengers. Metrolink passengers using services between East Didsbury and Rochdale will still be able to get through the city centre by going via Market Street and Shudehill and we will have staff on the ground to help anyone who needs it.”
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William Turner is a seasoned U.K. correspondent with a deep understanding of domestic affairs. With a passion for British politics and culture, he provides insightful analysis and comprehensive coverage of events within the United Kingdom.
