Worsley and Boothstown Transportation Task Group CONGESTION CHARGE INDEX HOME
9th JUNE 2008
BUSES, TRAMS, TRAINS AND BIKES
The people and businesses of Greater Manchester are set to have their say on an investment package of up to £3 billion into the public transport system following the Government’s decision to back the Greater Manchester bid to the Transport Innovation Fund.
The improvements across the area include more bus routes and services which are easy to understand and use, new Metrolink lines, more carriages on trains at peak times, reliable real-time passenger information at stations, simple ticketing, more park and ride sites and faster journeys.
These plans represent the biggest single investment in public transport outside the South East, and while a limited peak time congestion charge will be introduced to help pay for this – it will not be introduced until the summer of 2013 at the earliest, when the vast majority of the transport improvements are in place.
The benefits of the package are widespread and affect each and every form of transport across Greater Manchester, for the better.
Buses
Under our plans the bus network will be improved to have additional services operating at peak times into local town centres and to the city centre and to have more services operating during the early morning, evenings and on Sundays.
Under our plans, at least 90% of people will be within a five minute walk of a service that on weekdays will run at least every 20 minutes during the day time and at least every 30 minutes for week day early mornings and evenings and during the weekends.
New services will enable travel across the heart of the conurbation, for example from Middleton to Manchester Royal Infirmary and Chorlton, Ashton under Lyne to East Didsbury and Bolton to West Didsbury.
Bus Transit Schemes will bring high-quality services to the bus network by creating far more space for bus only running. The new Leigh-Salford-Manchester service, for example, will run on dedicated space for 80% of its route meaning that it can operate much more reliably without being delayed by general traffic.
Bus priority will be enhanced throughout Greater Manchester, providing faster journeys with increased reliability on high quality bus services, making buses an attractive alternative to the car. Frequencies and operating hours on orbital routes between major towns will be improved. New orbital links will be introduced every 20 minutes in central areas, allowing residents in places like Cheetham, Lower Broughton and Hulme to make journeys that are not currently easy – for instance to work and leisure opportunities at Salford Quays and Old Trafford. This orbital network will link to a shuttle service into Trafford Park.
Bus feeder services to rail and Metrolink stations will be strengthened. For instance, in Shaw, an existing circular service will be rerouted to facilitate better interchange with Shaw and Crompton Metrolink Station, and its frequency and hours of operation will be increased. There will be more direct and more frequent services to the city centre. A new limited stop ‘express’ service will operate from Gee Cross to the city centre, taking advantage of the M67 motorway. There will be better access to healthcare, employment and education, for instance, the service between Rochdale Bus Station and Rochdale Infirmary will have its frequency increased and hours of operation extended.
Trams
The TIF package will deliver up to an additional 35km of Metrolink track to Manchester Airport, Ashton-under-Lyne, and Rochdale and Oldham town centres. Funds have also been earmarked for the expansion of the network to Trafford Park and The Trafford Centre. This will take the total network coverage up to 103km, with the extensions already funded, they will almost triple the network and boost passenger numbers up to 70 million every year.
This will enable passengers to travel across Greater Manchester by Metrolink for example to Oldham and Rochdale town centres to Ashton-under-Lyne, Salford, Didsbury Village and Media City or direct to Manchester Airport from the city centre. A second crossing will also be developed through the heart of the city centre. The TIF package will also pay for additional trams with services running every six to 12 minutes to enhance capacity at peak times.
For those who may have to use the car for the initial part of their journey, there will be new secure park and ride sites at Ashton Moss, Sale Water Park, Shaw and Crompton and Trafford Park. There will also be reliable and high quality bus feeder services to ensure commuter journeys are seamless.
As well as the increased number and length of trams other improvements TIF will fund include real-time indicator boards at stops, improved lighting, CCTV and additional security officers to improve safety.
Trains
The TIF package will enhance the rail network. There will be more capacity, longer platforms and improved stations. Many parts of our rail network are already running at well over capacity during peak hours of the day. The crowding already seen on many peak time trains is set to become worse and a number of key railway stations are already being used by far more passengers than they were ever designed to cater for.
Station facilities are often poor, passenger information is variable in quality and CCTV coverage is patchy. The TIF package will help to address these issues with the Department for Transport committed to delivering additional carriages and other improvements to meet the expected growth in rail travel.
Renovation and refurbishment works will be carried out at 41 stations including the installation of high-quality CCTV to improve passenger safety. We are also committed to evaluating a new station at Golborne in conjunction with Network Rail and the Department for Transport. Provision exists within the programme to achieve this.
A new station will be built at White City to ease pressure and improve interchange between trains and trams. Park and ride facilities will be improved and extended in Stalybridge, Rochdale, Mills Hill, Horwich Parkway, Atherton, Heald Green, Cheadle Hulme, Hazel Grove and Romiley.
New Transport Interchanges
New interchanges physically linking the transport network will be created at Stockport, Bolton, Wigan, Altrincham and within the city centre.
Stockport Town Centre is already a major transport hub and an important strategic interchange for local, regional and national travel. To improve facilities and reduce congestion the plan is to replace the town’s bus station with a multi-million pound state-of-the-art interchange bringing together bus, heavy rail and the potential for a future Metrolink service.
The proposed new interchange will see the old bus station replaced with a new interchange adjacent to Wood Street in a single building containing help points, real-time passenger information, CCTV, public toilets, shops and cafes. To aid access, a new bridge will be built over the River Mersey linking the interchange to Heaton Lane, a covered walkway will link the interchange to the A6 and a lift will improve access to Mersey Square and the main shopping district.
Wigan town centre is currently served by two railway stations Wigan North Western and Wigan Wallgate and a number of nearby bus stops. The TIF package will see these facilities linked to provide an integrated public transport interchange.
A new glazed canopy is intended to be constructed to link the stations, the footpath will be widened, the old bus stops will be replaced with modern canopies and real time passenger information will be displayed. There will also be CCTV and changes to the highway to improve pedestrian safety. There will also be a sensitive restoration of Wigan Wallgate station’s canopy and facade.
In Bolton the bus station will be relocated at a new site adjacent to the railway station. The two will then be linked by a direct overhead walkway.
Other improvements this new multi-million pound gateway into the town will provide include better facilities including shops, cafes and public toilets, real time passenger information and highway improvements allowing buses to enter and exit the new station from both ends of Newport Street and Johnson Street.
The new interchange will allow for a significant expansion of bus services and reduce traffic levels.
In Altrincham, the existing bus station does not meet modern standards for safety, security and accessibility but is in an excellent location. The TIF package will bring improvements including, a one-way bus way parallel to Stamford New Road to improve access from the town centre and a new footbridge at the station to link the platforms.
New canopies will be built over the platforms and better passenger facilities such as a cafe, newsagents and public toilets will be built and a new travel shop, passenger lounge and staff facilities will also be created.
In Manchester, Chorlton Street coach station will be turned into a new bus interchange, the coach station will be relocated to the old Mayfield Goods Station and Parker Street will be redeveloped to provide improved passenger facilities.
Yellow School Buses
School children will also benefit from the TIF bid with the introduction of 120 purpose built yellow school buses. The introduction of these buses means a guaranteed seat for students, easier journeys and improved safety and security.
TIF will deliver 120 new yellow school buses in addition to the 36 already in operation across Greater Manchester. Further funding could see this number increase to more than 300 totally transforming the school run with the TIF funded element alone taking more than 2.3 million car journeys off the road every year.
Cars and Commercial Vehicles
The TIF package will reduce traffic on the busiest roads inside the charging rings by between 10 and 15% – which is similar to the fall in traffic levels experienced during school holidays. This will have a positive impact on delivery time reliability for commercial vehicles.
Park and Ride
There will be double the number of park and ride spaces throughout Greater Manchester adding 3,800 more spaces at a dozen existing sites and as many as seven new sites including Ashton, Sale Water Park, and along the new Leigh-Salford-Manchester Rapid Transit Bus Service.
Cycling
Cyclists and pedestrians will also see some big improvements as a result of the TIF bid. The cycle network will be expanded throughout Greater Manchester including to tram and train stations. There will also be more than 2,500 extra cycle parking spaces introduced at 250 new locations and secure long-term parking facilities for bikes at rail and Metrolink stations.
Integrated Ticketing
The central thinking behind the TIF bid is the need to get all forms of transport in Greater Manchester working together.
To this end AGMA and GMPTA are committed to introducing a smart travelcard which will allow passengers to move from one type of public transport to another, without having to buy multiple tickets.