Plans for Manchester Metrolink expansion move forward

Transport leaders have confirmed a pipeline of ‘rapid transit’ schemes for the future, with funding now signed off by the Bee Network Committee.

Launched as part of the Greater Manchester Strategy in July, the Mayor and local council leaders pledged that 90% of people in the city-region to be within a five-minute walk of a bus or tram that comes at least every 30 minutes by 2030.

£6m in funding has now been committed to develop the next proposals for new tram and tram-train lines as part of the expansion of the Bee Network.

Following on from the Oldham-Rochdale-Heywood-Bury Tram-Train ‘Pathfinder’ and Metrolink to Stockport, plans for better links to Manchester Airport and in the North-West of the city-region are also being prioritised as the next formal business cases to get underway.

The Funding also supports work on extensions to Middleton & the Northern Gateway and Trafford Waters, Port Salford & the Western Gateway, protecting routes for other schemes, and early development work for a new underground network in the city centre

The £6 million funding will pay for advancing planning work on major tram and tram-train projects, including:

• Finalising the Strategic Outline Case for extending Metrolink to Stockport from East Didsbury this autumn, with construction to begin in 2030 – the case will also explore the potential for tram-train connections to Hazel Grove, Tameside via Denton and Reddish, and Manchester Airport.
• Starting work this year on the Strategic Outline Case for completion of the Metrolink Airport Line ‘Western Leg’, which would serve a number of key growth areas at the Airport, Wythenshawe Hospital and Davenport Green. The case will also explore the potential for tram-train connections to Stockport, Altrincham and the Mid-Cheshire Line.
• In summer 2026, preparation will start on the Strategic Outline Case for expanding Metrolink connections to Salford Crescent and Salford Quays, and out to the North-West of the city-region, including options for links to Leigh, Wigan and Bolton.
• Further work this year to look at all the options for Middleton & the Northern Gateway and Trafford Waters, Port Salford & the Western Gateway and shape their business cases.
• Ongoing work to protect routes for longer-term schemes to Glossop, Hadfield, Marple and Warrington.
• Early development work on plans for a new underground system – which will complement and join up with plans for east-west underground connections as part of the proposed Liverpool-Manchester Railway.
• Work will also continue on plans for an Oldham-Rochdale-Heywood-Bury tram-train route, with leaders aiming for construction on the scheme to begin in 2028.

The report to the local leaders also includes plans to buy ‘next generation’ trams to complement the existing fleet. These would be double-length and fully ‘walk-through’, offering extra capacity to meet increasing demand for Bee Network trams.

Andy Burnham, Mayor of Greater Manchester, said: “Every part of our city region needs to feel the benefits of Greater Manchester’s growth. To make sure that happens, we’ve pledged to connect our people and communities to new opportunities better than ever before. We’re planning to connect all ten boroughs to the ever-popular Metrolink network as part of a long-term, sustained expansion of the Bee Network.

“This latest funding means we can develop the case for a pipeline of both tram and tram-train new lines and extensions – and ultimately underground infrastructure in the city centre – to make sure we get a public transport system befitting the global city region we are.

“More people are getting on board the Bee Network, but we can’t afford to be complacent. We need to plan ahead to accommodate continued growth, with more tram, bus and train routes giving people a viable alternative to the car.”

Vernon Everitt, Transport Commissioner for Greater Manchester, said: “Better transport is a core enabler of economic growth, higher productivity and greater access to homes, jobs and wider opportunity across the whole of Greater Manchester. This new development work will help ensure that we have a pipeline of projects to build on everything that is already being done across bus, tram, rail and walking, wheeling and cycling as we create an integrated Bee Network for the people and businesses of this fast-growing city-region.”