Transport for Greater Manchester have confirmed that Manchester Metrolink’s Trafford Park line will open to the public on Sunday 22nd March – making its already planned early opening of April even earlier than expected! Driver training has been ongoing for the past few weeks and with this making good progress it is all systems go for services to start in less than two weeks!
A period of shadow running will be necessary before public services begin to make sure that the timetable works in practice but provided this goes smoothly – and there is no reason to suggest it won’t! – it will be all systems go on Sunday 22nd March.
The Trafford Park line leaves the current line to Eccles just after the stop at Pomona and travels 5.5km to intu Trafford Centre with new stops also constructed at Wharfside, Imperial War Museum North, Village, Parkway and Barton Dock Road. For fare purposes the line is in zone 2 (up to Parkway) and 3 (between Parkway and intu Trafford Centre). Trams are due to run every 12 minutes and although not confirmed in the press release it is widely expected they will run between intu Trafford Centre and Cornbrook initially although eventually trams will run to Crumpsall on the Bury line when enough trams are available.
Andy Burnham, Mayor of Greater Manchester, said: “It’s great that the Trafford Park line will open for business on Sunday 22 March. It is a much-needed addition to the Metrolink network and will encourage more people to use public transport to journey around our city-region, and in doing so reduce congestion on our roads and improve the quality of our air. Last June I set out Our Network – a vision for the type of world-class transport network I want us to have here in Greater Manchester. This new line is a great step towards that, and a shining example of what we can deliver with the right funding and powers.”
The new line provides access to not only Europe’s largest industrial estate, giving good connections to thousands of jobs, but also many popular retail and leisure destinations. These include Old Trafford football ground, the intu Trafford Centre, of course, and the Imperial War Museum North.
Eamonn Boylan, TfGM’s Chief Executive, said: “A project of this size and scale is a huge undertaking and we are pleased at how smoothly it’s come together, meaning we’re opening the line much sooner than we anticipated. We’re very pleased to be welcoming passengers on board and opening up the Trafford Park area for workers, shoppers and visitors. I have no doubt it’ll make a huge difference to the area, particularly to the many local businesses. One particularly exciting partnership we’ve developed has been with intu Trafford Centre, and we look forward to growing our relationship in the years ahead.”
With the opening of the line Metrolink will proudly boast 99 stops with over 100km of track in operation, fully cementing its position as the UK’s largest tram network. 27 extra trams are on order for delivery from late spring/early summer to help cater for the increased passenger numbers on an enlarged network. But once this line opens there will be no new lines under construction for the first time in quite a while!