As part of his last mayoral manifesto, Andy Burnham (Mayor of Greater Manchester) committed to a pilot scheme to allow bikes to be carried on Manchester Metrolink. And now it has been confirmed that transport leaders are to consider proposals for this pilot which would allow invited participants only to take their bikes on board for the trams for a trial period under test conditions.
Currently the conditions of carriage on Metrolink only allows folded bikes in bags to be carried onto trams with normal bikes not permitted on board. But as part of the pilot invited participants will be allowed to take their bikes on board on off-peak services.
The trial – which will be considered by the Bee Network Committee at their next meeting – will take place under supervision of TfGM and KeolisAmey Metrolink to ensure that the impact on passengers is minimised and public safety is maintained.
Volunteer cyclists will be able to take their bikes on board, sampling different routes and stops at different times of the day and day of the week. Feedback will then be sought from other passengers as well as the cyclists themselves.
If approved, the pilot would start at the end of February and take place over a period of four-six weeks and the results will then be presented to the Bee Network Committee in the summer.
A working group was set-up last year with TfGM teaming up with consultants to carry our research and gain insight from other light rail networks. The next step of this will study the impact of bikes on trams in practice, taking into account different times of the day and different scenarios. The chance will also be taken to look at the carriage of adapted bikes used as mobility aids, scooters and a broader range of mobility scooters than are currently accepted.
The pilot will consider the space given to transport bikes alongside passengers, taking into account the existing challenges of accommodating bikes both on the trams and the wider network, including at stops and interchanges.
As well as bike users other users of Metrolink will be consulted including those with disabilities and those travelling with pushchairs.
Dame Sarah Storey, Active Travel Commissioner for Greater Manchester, said: “My recommendation to trial the carriage of non-folding bikes on trams is borne from the ambition to deliver a universally accessible Bee Network in Greater Manchester, where everyone has the choice to switch between different modes in one journey should they need to, as well as ensuring that people who use their cycle as a mobility aid aren’t excluded from using the service.
“I fully support the mayor’s manifesto commitment to investigate changing the current arrangements and have long advocated for the benefits of allowing what would be a naturally small number of users, to travel responsibly with a bike during off-peak periods. Like many others – I’ve experienced for myself the disappointment of being forced to travel by car with my bike when I’d rather not, because the choice to travel by tram isn’t currently available.
“In order to help us maximise the benefits that any changes might bring, it’s vital a thorough study is undertaken to assess the feasibility of bringing non-folding and non-standard bikes on trams. The proposed pilot is subject to approval at next week’s Bee Network Committee and should it go ahead, I look forward to examining the study’s findings and working on what comes next.”
TfGM are due to shortly recruit volunteers for the pilot from groups it has already been working with.