£575 million Metrolink expansion gets final sign off

Date published: 16/05/2008

Leading politicians and transport bosses in Greater Manchester have welcomed the government’s decision to give its final approval for a £575 million expansion of the Metrolink tram network.

The new Metrolink lines will run to Rochdale and Oldham, Droylsden in Tameside and Chorlton in South Manchester. The project is being funded by local authorities in Greater Manchester and the Department for Transport.

Councillor Alan Taylor, Leader of Rochdale Council, said: "This is another positive step forward for the borough and a boost to our local economy because of the extra investment and prosperity that comes with Metrolink. Connecting communities with Kingsway, Oldham and Manchester by Metrolink will bring many benefits and increase Rochdale's prominence in the Greater Manchester city-region. It will make it easier for people to come here, and for us to travel into Manchester. I'm delighted that things can really now start moving - the next step is to secure an extension down Drake Street into Rochdale town centre through the bid to the Government's Transport Innovation Fund."

Lord Peter Smith, Leader of the Association of Greater Manchester Authorities (AGMA), said: “Public transport will have a huge part to play in the region’s continuing economic success, and I’m delighted we’ve now been given the go-ahead to build three new Metrolink lines.

“The Metrolink expansion has received widespread support from politicians, businesses and local communities across Greater Manchester. Without their backing, we wouldn’t be in this position today.

“We’ll be able to extend the network even further if the bid to the government’s Transport Innovation Fund is successful. I hope these new Metrolink lines will be just the start of a major investment in our public transport network.”

Sir Richard Leese, Deputy Leader of AGMA and Leader of Manchester City Council, said: “We welcome this good news. This is an important milestone but it is just the start. We need further funding to secure the transport infrastructure required to bring significant economic benefits to the city. We look forward to receiving the Government’s decision on our Transport Innovation Fund bid which will generate more investment and boost the region’s economy.”

Michael Renshaw, Interim Service Delivery Director at Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Executive (GMPTE), said: “We’re already carrying out initial surveys along the routes, and we’ve selected M-Pact Thales as our preferred bidder for the expansion.

“Today’s announcement means we can now complete our negotiations with the consortium and hopefully sign a contract within the next few weeks. We’ll be able to provide more details about the timescales for the project once we’ve got a construction team in place.”

The new Metrolink lines will cover nearly 20 miles, almost doubling the size of the network. They are expected to take five million car journeys off local roads every year, and to increase the number of trips passengers make each day from 55,000 to more than 90,000.

The M-Pact Thales consortium is made up of Thales UK, Laing O’Rourke and GrantRail. It has been selected as the preferred bidder for a contract to design, build and maintain the new Metrolink lines.

The consortium will also build a new quarter of a mile extension to Media City:UK in Salford Quays if the project is approved by the government.

More lines into Oldham and Rochdale town centres, as well as to Ashton-under-Lyne, East Didsbury, Manchester Airport and the Trafford Centre, could also be built if the bid to the government’s Transport Innovation Fund is successful.