Old Trafford tram stop

This article is about the present-day Old Trafford Metrolink station. For the former British Rail Old Trafford station, see Trafford Bar tram stop.
 Old Trafford
Metrolink

A T-68 leaving Old Trafford; the Old Trafford Cricket Ground scoreboard can be seen behind the vehicle.
Old Trafford
Location of Old Trafford in Greater Manchester
Location
Place Old Trafford
Local authority Trafford
Coordinates 53°27′23″N 2°17′05″W / 53.4563°N 2.2848°W / 53.4563; -2.2848Coordinates: 53°27′23″N 2°17′05″W / 53.4563°N 2.2848°W / 53.4563; -2.2848
Grid reference SJ812956
Platforms 2
Fare zone information
Metrolink Zone E
Present status In operation
Operations
Original operator MSJAR
Pre-grouping company MSJAR
Post-grouping company MSJAR
London Midland Region of British Railways
History
Opened 5 May 1857
Closed as rail station 24 December 1991
Conversion to Metrolink operation 15 June 1992
Former name 1862: Cricket Ground
1887: Cricket Ground (Old Trafford)
1910: Cricket and Football Grounds
1931: Warwick Road or Warwick Road (Old Trafford)
UK Trams portal

Old Trafford is a tram stop on the Altrincham Line of Greater Manchester's light rail Metrolink system. It is located in the Old Trafford area of Stretford, besides Warwick Road and Elsinore Road. It opened on 15 June 1992 as part of Phase 1 of Metrolink's expansion. The station is regularly used by crowds for access to Old Trafford Football Ground and Old Trafford Cricket Ground which are located nearby.

History

Old Trafford station (then named Warwick Road) in 1988, prior to conversion to Metrolink

A station, situated just to the north of the present station, was opened by the Manchester, South Junction and Altrincham Railway (MSJAR)[1] in May 1857. It was known as Manchester Art Treasures Exhibition,[2] being built to serve the exhibition of that name,[1] which was open between 5 May 1857 and 17 October 1857.[3] The station closed in October 1857.[2] It was adapted and reopened as Old Trafford Cricket Ground in 1862 for use every year thereafter until 1866,[4] on match days only.[5]

The station opened for special events, such as the Royal Agricultural Society Exhibition in 1869,[6] and again between May and October 1887[7] for the Royal Jubilee Exhibition in Stretford Royal Botanical Gardens, held to celebrate the Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria,[8] during both of which the station was known as Exhibition;[6][7] additional platforms were constructed for the latter.[9] From 1887 until 1963 it operated as a four-platform station. It was renamed Cricket Ground (Old Trafford) and continued to open on match days only; in 1910 it became Cricket and Football Grounds[10] following the opening of Manchester United's ground on 19 February 1910.[11]

On 11 May 1931, following the electrification of the MSJAR, the station was renamed Warwick Road and was open daily.[12] It was also referred to as Warwick Road (Old Trafford)[13] on early tickets, timetables, etc. Warwick Road closed as a British Rail station on 25 December 1991[13] (the last trains having run on 24 December 1991) for conversion to light rail operation,[14] and reopened as a Metrolink station on 15 June 1992, at which point it was renamed Old Trafford.[13]

Location and use

The station is adjacent to Old Trafford Cricket Ground, the home of Lancashire County Cricket Club, and only a short walk of half a mile[15] from Old Trafford football stadium, the home of Manchester United F.C.. As a result, Old Trafford Station regularly faces heavy usage from the crowds attending cricket and football matches and concerts. Crowd control operations often involve the use of turnstiles.

An average of 2,000 passenger journeys are made per day to or from Old Trafford stop, but this can rise to 9,500 on a match day. In order to manage the crowds more effectively, the station was rebuilt in 2009. The pedestrian underpass was closed and passengers instead cross the tram line to change platforms. The platforms themselves were rearranged into a staggered layout by moving the northbound platform (for trams into Manchester), and both platforms were doubled in length. A new match day gating system was installed and the station was redecorated with the new yellow and silver Metrolink corporate identity.[16]

Services

Old Trafford is located on the Altrincham Line with trams towards Altrincham stopping every 6 minutes during the day, Mondays to Saturdays, every 12 minutes Monday to Saturday evenings and Sunday daytime and every 15 minutes Sunday evenings. Trams also head towards Manchester and Bury, with the Monday to Saturday daytime service running every 12 minutes each to Manchester Piccadilly or Bury, while evening and Sundays journeys run to Piccadilly only with journeys to Bury requiring a change of trams at Piccadilly Gardens.[17]

Service pattern

Connecting bus routes

Old Trafford station is only served by one service, Stagecoach Manchester service 253, which runs weekdays mornings to Piccadilly Gardens via the universities.[18] A more frequent service is provided on Chester Road.

Notes

  1. 1 2 Dixon 1994, p. 27
  2. 1 2 Butt 1995, p. 153
  3. ↑ Dixon 1994, pp. 27,31
  4. ↑ Butt 1995, p. 177
  5. ↑ Dixon 1994, p. 39
  6. 1 2 Dixon 1994, p. 42
  7. 1 2 Butt 1995, p. 93
  8. ↑ Dixon 1994, p. 53
  9. ↑ Dow 1962, p. 117
  10. ↑ Croughton, Kidner & Young 1982, p. 109
  11. ↑ Bartram, Steve (19 February 2010). "On This Day: 19 Feb 1910". Manutd.com - The Official Website. Manchester: Manchester United Ltd. Retrieved 19 October 2010.
  12. ↑ Dixon 1994, pp. 67,68
  13. 1 2 3 Butt 1995, p. 241
  14. ↑ Dixon 1994, p. 119
  15. ↑ "Google Maps route from Old Trafford Metrolink station to Manchester United Football Club". Google Maps. Retrieved 22 July 2013.
  16. ↑ "Old Trafford Metrolink stop changes get green light". Transport Briefing. 2009-07-13. Retrieved 2009-07-13.
  17. ↑ "Metrolink - Tram Times - Old Trafford". Metrolink. Retrieved 13 February 2013.
  18. ↑ "Network Maps". Transport for Greater Manchester. Retrieved 10 September 2012.

References

External links

Preceding station   Manchester Metrolink   Following station
towards Altrincham
Altrincham – Deansgate-Castlefield Line
Monday to Saturday peak only
Altrincham – Etihad Campus Line
towards Etihad Campus
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