Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) has announced that improvement works such as Metrolink tram upgrades and several track replacements are set to take place across the region this summer. The news comes after £21.4 million will be invested to improve the Metrolink network over the next 12 months, “to ensure services remain safe and reliable for years to come”.
The works were approved by the Bee Network committee on Thursday (February 22) and are part of a planned £147m package to maintain, upgrade and improve the network up to 2027. Immediate priorities for this summer include track replacement in several parts of the city centre, including Piccadilly Gardens and London Road, and on parts of the Altrincham and Bury Lines, which transport bosses claim “will mean quicker, smoother and more reliable journeys for passengers”.
Plans also include a programme of modifications to the trams themselves, installing state-of-the art systems to keep passengers safe such as sensors in the middle of double trams and speed warning devices. New electrical substations are being added along parts of the Bury Line to provide additional power so that more doubles trams run in future.
Metrolink is also replacing much of the communications network critical to the operation of its signalling and control systems. TfGM is also looking into the replacement of overhead lines on some of the older parts of the network such as the Bury Line, which caused several prolonged disruptions in 2023.
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Whilst TfGM have said these improvement works will offer “long-term benefits to passengers” including better reliability and an improved experience for customers, there will be some short-term disruption but this “will be planned to minimise inconvenience to passengers”. Important information about service changes and replacement bus services will be available well in advance of the work.
Danny Vaughan, TfGM’s Head of Metrolink, said: “Metrolink is an integral part of the Bee Network, and it’s really important that we invest in it so that we can continue to provide a safe, reliable and positive experience for the thousands of people who travel with us every day.
“This is a coordinated package of planned works to maintain, renew and improve the network and help to keep Greater Manchester moving, and while we understand any disruption can be frustrating, we’ll be doing everything we can to keep it to a minimum. We will make sure passengers know what’s happening well in advance and I’d ask people to please bear with us while the works are carried out, as the benefits will be there to be enjoyed for years to come.”
The upcoming tram improvement works include:
- The closure of the Ashton line between Ashton and Piccadilly on Saturday and Sunday (March 9 and 10) for rail repair work at Clayton Hall and Audenshaw and essential maintenance at Alan Turing Way. There will be a replacement bus between Ashton and Piccadilly, while the Eccles line operates to Cornbrook.
- The Rochdale and Oldham line will also partially close – between Rochdale and Freehold – on Sunday, April 21. This is due to rail repairs taking place at Westwood, Union Street and King Street. A bus replacement will run between Rochdale town centre and Freehold.
Further works are planned to take place throughout this – and subsequent – years. For full details of tram improvement works planned for this year, find out more here.