Manchester Metrolink is a tram/light rail system in Greater Manchester, England. The network has 99 stops along 64 miles (103 km) of standard-gauge route, making it the most extensive light rail system in the United Kingdom. Metrolink is owned by the public body Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) and operated and maintained under contract by a Keolis/Amey consortium. In 2021/22, 26 million passenger journeys were made on the system.
Middleton is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale, Greater Manchester, England, on the River Irk 5 miles (8.0 km) southwest of Rochdale and 5 miles (8.0 km) northeast of Manchester city centre. Middleton had a population of 42,972 at the 2011 Census. It lies on the northern edge of Manchester, with Blackley to the south and Moston to the south east.
Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) is a local government body responsible for co-ordinating transport services throughout Greater Manchester in North West England. It is an executive arm of the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA), the city region's administrative authority. The strategies and policies of Transport for Greater Manchester are set by the GMCA and its Greater Manchester Transport Committee (GMTC). The committee is made up of 33 councillors appointed from the ten Greater Manchester boroughs, as well as the Mayor of Greater Manchester.
The Oldham Loop Line was a suburban-line in Greater Manchester, England, used by trains that ran from Manchester Victoria to Rochdale via Oldham Mumps. Services on the line at the time of its closure were operated by Northern Rail.
Bolton Interchange is a transport interchange combining Bolton railway station and Bolton Bus Station in the town of Bolton in Greater Manchester, England. The station is located on the Manchester to Preston line and the Ribble Valley line, and is managed by Northern Trains. The station is 11+1⁄4 miles (18.1 km) north west of Manchester Piccadilly. Ticket gates have been in operation at the station since 2016.
free bus is a zero-fare bus system that operates in Greater Manchester. The system was first introduced in Manchester city centre in 2002, with three routes linking the city's major thoroughfares and stations with its main commercial, financial and cultural districts.
Mills Hill railway station is in the Mills Hill area of Middleton in the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale, in Greater Manchester, England. The station is 5¾ miles (9 km) north of Manchester Victoria on the Caldervale Line. Mills Hill lies on Middleton's common boundary with Chadderton, and thus serves both communities.
Bury Interchange is a transport hub in the town of Bury, Greater Manchester, England. Opened in 1980, it is the northern terminus of the Manchester Metrolink's Bury Line, which prior to 1992 was a heavy-rail line. It also incorporates a bus station.
Navigation Road is a station that serves both Northern Trains and Manchester Metrolink located in the east of Altrincham, in Greater Manchester, England. It consists of a Northern-operated heavy rail station on the Mid-Cheshire Line, and an adjoining light rail stop on the Altrincham Line of Greater Manchester's Metrolink network. The original heavy rail element of the station was opened by the Manchester, South Junction and Altrincham Railway in 1931, and the Metrolink element opened in 1992. A level crossing operates at the southern end of the station.
Stagecoach Manchester is a major bus operator in Greater Manchester. It is the largest UK bus subsidiary of Stagecoach Group outside of Greater London, as well as the largest within the metropolitan county of Greater Manchester by passenger numbers, carrying up to 96.2 million passengers in 2019/20. It is made up of two brands: Stagecoach and Magic Bus.
Shudehill Interchange is a transport hub between Manchester Victoria station and the Northern Quarter in Manchester city centre, England, which comprises a Metrolink stop and a bus station.
Rochdale Interchange is a transport hub located in the town of Rochdale in Greater Manchester, England, run by Transport for Greater Manchester.
The Wilmslow Road bus corridor is a 5.5-mile-long section of road in Manchester that is served by a large number of bus services. The corridor runs from Parrs Wood to Manchester city centre along Wilmslow and Oxford Roads, serving Didsbury, Withington, Fallowfield and Rusholme.
Ashton-under-Lyne bus station is a bus station that is located in the town of Ashton-under-Lyne in Greater Manchester, run by Transport for Greater Manchester. The bus station is situated on Wellington Road and adjoins the Arcades Shopping Centre. The bus station was opened in 2020 and replaced the previous bus station that was built on the current site.
The history of Manchester Metrolink begins with its conception as Greater Manchester's light rail system in 1982 by the Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Executive, and spans its inauguration in 1992 and the successive phases of expansion.
Greater Manchester Bus route 58 was operated by First Greater Manchester between Rochdale and Middleton bus stations via Milnrow, Newhey, Shaw & Crompton, Oldham and Chadderton. It had a sister route 59 which operated on the same route between Middleton and Shaw, and also served Rushcroft. The route was curtailed to run between Rochdale and Oldham in 2017 and was withdrawn in 2020 during the Coronavirus pandemic. The route is now covered by services 57 and 182.
The Leigh-Salford-Manchester Bus Rapid Transit scheme in Greater Manchester, England provides transport connections between Leigh, Atherton, Tyldesley, Ellenbrook and Manchester city centre via Salford. The guided busway and bus rapid transit (BRT) scheme promoted by Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) opened on 3 April 2016. Built by Balfour Beatty at a total cost of £122 million to improve links from former Manchester Coalfield towns into Manchester city centre, the busway proposal encountered much opposition and a public enquiry in 2002 before construction finally started in 2013. A branch route from Atherton, and an extension to the Manchester Royal Infirmary have been added to the planned original scheme.
This timeline of Manchester Metrolink lists significant events in the history of Greater Manchester's light rail network.
The East Manchester Line (EML) is a tram line of the Manchester Metrolink in Greater Manchester, England, running from Manchester to Ashton-under-Lyne via Droylsden and Audenshaw. The line opened in 2013 as part of phase three of the system's expansion.
This is a list of confirmed or proposed future developments of the Manchester Metrolink light rail system.
