Cornbrook Metrolink station

 Cornbrook
Manchester Metrolink
Cornbrook station
Location
Place Manchester city centre
Local authority Manchester
Platforms 2
Fare zone information
Metrolink Zone H
History
Opened 6 December 1999
For interchange only
3 September 2005
For entry and exit
UK Trams portal

Cornbrook Metrolink station is located on the north side of Cornbrook Road between the A56 Chester Road dual carriageway and Pomona Docks on the Manchester Ship Canal. It is built on the former Cheshire Lines Committee approach to Manchester Central.

Presently access is from the Chester Road direction. It serves the St George's and Hulme areas of Manchester and the Pomona area which is set to undergo redevelopment. The station is served by trams on the Altrincham and Eccles lines of Manchester Metrolink and acts as an interchange between them. As well as two through platforms it had a bay platform at the Manchester end of the station which was taken out of use and the tracks lifted during the August 2009 upgrades. Cornbrook Metrolink station will eventually be the terminus of a MediaCityUK shuttle service, although the branch is currently being served by Eccles trams.[1] During August 2009 the track layout was extensively remodelled to accommodate the MediaCityUK tram service and to provide greater operational flexibility and service availability.

Contents

History

The stop opened with the Eccles extension on 6 December 1999 with two through platforms and a Manchester facing bay platform for terminating trams. Cornbrook was unique when opened as there was no access to/from the street, the stop being used for transfer between Bury-Altrincham line trams and Eccles line trams. Due to security issues and a low estimated usage, Cornbrook was initially intended for interchange only, passengers transferring between the Altrincham and Eccles lines.

Because of a rise in the local population due to residential building, the stop's street access opened on 3 September 2005, This was the emergency exit to street level, which has since been opened up to form the passenger entrance/exit to the station.

During August, 2009 the track layout was extensively remodelled to accommodate the MediaCityUK tram service and as a result the track was removed from the bay platform reducing the number of platforms to 2. However the infrastructure remains and the platform could be reinstated if the need arises.

This is the second station in this locality as Cornbrook railway station was opened to serve Pomona Gardens on the south side of Cornbrook Road on 1 June 1856 by the Manchester, South Junction and Altrincham Railway (MSJAR), which runs parallel to the Metrolink at this point. The first station closed on 31 May 1865.

Services

Cornbrook is located on the Altrincham, Eccles and South Manchester Lines.

Altrincham Line

Trams to Altrincham stop every 6 minutes during the day, Mondays to Saturdays, every 12 minutes Monday to Saturday evenings and Sunday evenings and every 15 minutes Sunday daytime. Trams from Altrincham towards Manchester and Bury, stop every 6 minutes with the Monday to Saturday daytime service running to Manchester Piccadilly or Bury, while evening and Sundays journeys run to Bury via Manchester Piccadilly.[2].

Eccles & MediaCityUK Line

Trams on the Eccles Line towards Eccles or MediaCityUK stop every 12 minutes during the day Monday-Saturday, and trams to Manchester Piccadilly every 6 minutes. Trams run every 12 minutes Monday-Saturday evenings and Sunday daytime and every 15 minutes Sunday evenings between Manchester Piccadilly and Eccles, which calls at MediaCityUK[2].

South Manchester Line

On the South Manchester Line, trams run towards Victoria and St Werburgh's Road running every 12 minutes Monday-Saturdays and Sunday daytime and every 15 minutes Sunday early mornings and evenings.[2]. Service will increase from 12 minutes to 6 minutes once the line to Central Park, Oldham Mumps and Rochdale opens. Services will extend from St Werburgh's Road to East Didsbury in 2013 and additional services will run between the city centre and Manchester Airport in 2016.

Service Pattern

At Peak Times: South/Westbound:

North/Eastbound:

Connecting bus routes

Cornbrook station is served by bus services on nearby Chester Road. Stagecoach Manchester/Arriva North West service 84 runs to Reddish via Chorlton, West Didsbury and East Didsbury and Stagecoach service 255 runs to Partington via Stretford and Urmston. Arriva service 264 runs at peak times to Altrincham via Stretford and Sale. All three services run to Manchester, with the 84 and 255 terminating at Piccadilly Gardens and the 264 terminating at Shudehill Interchange [3].

References

  1. ^ "First trams pulls into MediaCityUK". MEN Media. http://menmedia.co.uk/manchestereveningnews/news/transport/public_transport/s/1328314_metrolink_trams_pull_in_to_mediacityuk_station_for_first_time. Retrieved 26 September 2010. 
  2. ^ a b c "Metrolink - Tram Times". Transport for Greater Manchester. http://www.metrolink.co.uk/tramtimes/. Retrieved 6 July 2011. 
  3. ^ "Transport for Greater Manchester - Journey Planning - Network Maps". Transport for Greater Manchester. http://www.tfgm.com/journey_planning/network_maps.cfm. Retrieved 6 July 2011. 

External links

Preceding station   Manchester Metrolink   Following station
towards Altrincham
 Altrincham - Bury Line
towards Bury
Altrincham - Piccadilly Line
towards Piccadilly
towards Eccles
 Eccles - Piccadilly Line
towards MediaCityUK
 MediaCityUK - Cornbrook Line Terminus
St Werburgh's Road - Victoria Line
towards Victoria
    Under Construction    
South Manchester Line
towards Victoria
Manchester Airport Line
towards