Because of the complexity of the Manchester-area rail transportation system, there are altogether four maps showing the routes:
- A map showing The whole region, with smaller rectangles showing where the other three maps fit in.
- A map showing The Manchester metropolitan region, including Machester, Oldham, Salford and Stockport.
- A map showing The Manchester core city area
- A map showing The NW area of the region, including Bolton and Bury.
It is possible to by-pass the maps:
THE MANCHESTER REGION
THE MANCHESTER METROPOLITAN REGION
THE MANCHESTER CORE CITY AREA
THE BOLTON/BURY AREA
ABBREVIATIONS ON THE MAPS
| BB | Brooks' Bar | OR | Oldfield Rd. |
| CB | Cromwell Bldg. | OxR | Oxford Rd. |
| CL | Cross Lane | OT | Old Trafford |
| CR | Chester Rd. | PG | Plymouth Grove |
| ENR | Eccles New Rd. | RB | Regent Bridge |
| FR | Frederick Rd. | RR | Regent Rd. |
| GWS | Great Western Street | TB | Trafford Bridge |
| LR | Lloyd Rd. | TC | The Crescent |
| MLE | Moss Lane East | TR | Trafford Road |
| OL | Ordsall Lane | WR | Warwick Rd. |
ROUTES
BOLTON TRAM ROUTES
Operator: Bolton Corporation Tramways
| B | Bolton - Lostock - Beehive |
| D | Bolton - Deane |
| E | Bolton - Deane - Punch Lane - Westhoughton |
| F | Bolton - Moses Gate - Farnworth |
| G | Bolton - Moses Gate - Walkden |
| H | Bolton - Halliwell |
| M | Bolton - Moses Gate |
| N | Bolton - Lostock - Beehive - Horwich |
| O | Bolton - Tudor Ave. |
| R | Bolton - Deane - Punch Lane |
| T | Bolton - Tonge Moor |
BURY TRAM ROUTES
Operator: Bury Corporation Tramways
| Rochdale Depot / South Bury - Bury Station - Tottington | |
| Rochdale Depot / South Bury - Bury Station - Walmersley |
MANCHESTER TRAM ROUTES
Operator: Manchester Corporation Tramways
Note: Short-turn routes (indicated by a letter after the route number) are not shown unless they diverge from the main route.
| 13 | Albert Sq. - [Princess St. - Cavendish St.] [back: Oxford Rd. - Oxford St. - St. Peter's Sq.] - Stretford Rd. - Brooks' Bar - Chorlton - Southern Cemetery |
| 19 | Exchange Station - Market St. - Piccadilly - London Rd. - London Road Station - Downing St. - Hyde Rd. - Reddish Lane - Denton - Hyde |
| 20 | Piccadilly - Oldham Rd. - Hollinwood - Oldham - Waterhead |
| 21 | Piccadilly - Oldham Rd. - Hollinwood [Rush hours only] |
| 23 | Chorlton - Brooks' Bar - Hulme - Stretford Rd. - [Oxford Rd. - Oxford St. - St. Peter's Sq.] [back: Princess St. - Cavendish St.] - Piccadilly - Oldham Rd. - Hollinwood |
| 27D (1) | Piccadilly - [Princess St. - Cavendish St.] [back: Oxford Rd. - Oxford St. - St. Peter's Sq.] - Stretford Rd. - Old Trafford - Trafford Park [Rush hour and special services] |
| 27D (2) | Birchfields Rd. - Rusholme - Great Western St. [back: Moss Lane East] - Brooks' Bar - Stretford Rd. - Old Trafford - Trafford Park [Rush hour and special services] |
| 30 | Piccadilly - [Princess St. - Cavendish St.] [back: Oxford Rd. - Oxford St. - St. Peter's Sq.] - Stretford Rd. - Old Trafford - Trafford Bridge |
| 32 | Exchange Station - Market St. - Piccadilly - London Rd. - London Road Station - Downing St. - Hyde Rd. - West Gorton - Hyde Rd. - Reddish Lane - Reddish Bull’s Head |
| 33 | Piccadilly - London Rd. [back: Aytoun St.] - London Road Station - Downing St. - Hyde Rd. - Reddish Lane - Reddish Bull’s Head - Reddish Vale Rd. |
| 35 | Exchange Station - Market St. - Piccadilly - London Rd. - London Road Station - Downing St. - Stockport Rd. - Levenshulme - Stockport - Hazel Grove |
| 35B | Albert Sq. - Princess St. [back: Cavendish St. - Oxford Rd. - Oxford St. - St. Peter's Sq.] - Upper Brook St. - Plymouth Grove - Stockport Rd. - Levenshulme - Stockport |
| 35C | Piccadilly - London Rd. [back: Aytoun St.] - London Road Station - Downing St. - Stockport Rd. - Levenshulme - Stockport |
| 36 | Albert Sq. - St. Peter's Sq. - City Rd. - Hulme - Princess Rd. - Southern Cemetery |
| 37 | Southern Cemetery - Chorlton - Old Trafford - Chester Rd. - Deansgate - Market St. - Piccadilly - London Rd. - London Road Station - Downing St. - Stockport Rd. - Levenshulme (Lloyd Rd.) |
| 37A | Exchange Station - Market St. - Piccadilly - London Rd. - London Road Station - Downing St. - Stockport Rd. - Levenshulme - Heaton Moor Rd. [Rush hours only] |
| 37B | Piccadilly - London Rd. [back: Aytoun St.].- London Road Station - Downing St. - Stockport Rd. - Levenshulme (Lloyd Rd.) [Rush hours only] |
| 37E | Grosvenor St. - Downing St. - Stockport Rd. - Levenshulme (Lloyd Rd.) [Rush hours only] |
| 38 | Albert Sq. - Princess St.[back: Oxford Rd. - Oxford St. - St. Peter's Sq.] - Upper Brook St. - Plymouth Grove - Stockport Rd. - West Point - Fallowfield |
| 38B | Albert Sq. - Princess St.[back: Oxford Rd. - Oxford St. - St. Peter's Sq.] - Upper Brook St. - Plymouth Grove - Stockport Rd. - West Point - Mauldeth Rd. [Rush hours only] |
| 39 | Exchange Station - Market St. - Piccadilly - London Rd. - London Road Station - Downing St. - Stockport Rd. - West Point - East Didsbury |
| 40 | Albert Sq. - Princess St. [back: Cavendish St. - Oxford Rd. - Oxford St. - St. Peter's Sq.] - Upper Brook St. - Rusholme - Birchfields Rd. - East Didsbury |
| 42F | Exchange Station - Market St. - Piccadilly - [Princess St. - Cavendish St.] [back: Oxford Rd. - Oxford St. - St. Peter's Sq.] - Oxford Rd. - Platt Lane [Football specials only] |
| 44 | Piccadilly - [Princess St. - Cavendish St.] [back: Oxford Rd. - Oxford St. - St. Peter's Sq.] - Oxford Rd. - Princess Rd. - Southern Cemetery |
| 48B | Piccadilly - Market St. - Deansgate - Chester Rd. - Old Trafford - Warwick Rd. [Rush hours only] |
OLDHAM TRAM ROUTES
Operator: Oldham Corporation Tramways
| 1 | Hollinwood - Oldham - Waterhead |
| 11 | Hollinwood - Oldham |
SALFORD TRAM ROUTES
Operator: Salford Corporation Tramways
| 34 | Deansgate - Salford Station - Chapel St. - Oldfield Rd.- Regent Rd. - Eccles New Rd. - Weaste |
| 69 | Victoria St. - Blackfriars Rd. - Cromwell Bldg. |
| 70 | Ordsall Lane - Trafford Rd. - Cross Lane - Frederick Rd. - Lower Broughton - Blackfriars Rd. - Deansgate - Regent Bridge - Regent Rd. - Trafford Rd. - Ordsall Lane [Loop route, clockwise] |
| 71 | Ordsall Lane - Trafford Rd. - Regent Rd. - Regent Bridge - Deansgate - Blackfriars Rd. - Lower Broughton - Frederick Rd. - Cross Lane - Trafford Rd. - Ordsall Lane [Loop route, anti-clockwise] |
| 76 | Deansgate - Salford Station - Chapel St. - The Crescent - Cross Lane - Eccles New Rd. - Weaste |
| 81 | Deansgate - Salford Station - Chapel St. - The Crescent - Broad St. - Irlams o’ th’ Height |
STOCKPORT TRAM ROUTES
Operator: Stockport Corporation Tramways
| 1 | Reddish Bull’s Head - Reddish Vale Rd. - Stockport - Cheadle Heath |
| 2 | Hyde - Bredbury - Stockport - Edgeley |
| 3 | Reddish Bull’s Head - Reddish Vale Rd. - Stockport - - Hazel Grove |
| 4 | Levenshulme (Lloyd Rd.) - - Stockport - Hazel Grove |
CHARACTERISTICS OF THE SYSTEM
NETWORK LENGTH
- Tramways: approx. 114 km. (Manchester Corporation Tranways only)
HISTORY
Tramways
- Horse-powered tramways: 17 May 1877 - 1903.
- Steam-powered tramways: 1882 - 1905.
- First-generation electric tramways: 7 June 1901 - 10 Jan. 1949 (in Bury until Feb. 1949 and in Stockport until 25 Aug. 1951).
- Revived tramway (electric overhead): 20 July 1992 – today.
GAUGE
- Tramways / Metrolink: 1435 mm.
TRAM PRESERVATION
The Museum of Transport , in Smedley, just north of Victoria Station, has a horse-drawn tram, two early electric trams and the prototype Metrolink tram from the early 1990s.
SOURCES
- Bett, W.H. & Gillham, J.C. Great British tramway networks. London: Light Railway Transport League, 1962.
- "MetroLink: Next stop ... Trafford Park", Tramways & Urban Transit, Aug. 2019 (82: 980), p.294-296.
- "Metrolink on the move", Tramways & Urban Transit, July 2008 (71: 847), 24p. supplement.
- Symons, J. & Johnston, H. "Manchester: The 20 year wait for a tram!", Tramways & Urban Transit, July 2002 (65: 775), p.248-252.
- Wilson, A. "A brief history of the Manchester tramways", The Modern Tramway. Nov. 1941 (4: 47), p.124-125. and Dec. 1941 (4: 48), p.140-141.
- Pulling, N. "Systems Factfile Special: Metrolink, Manchester, UK", Tramways & Urban Transit, July 2011 (74: 883), p.263-268.
- Pulling, N. "Systems Factfile No. 165: Manchester, United Kingdom", Tramways & Urban Transit, July 2021 (84: 1003), p.284-289.
- Yearsley, I. The Manchester tram. Huddersfield: The Advertiser Press,1962.
- Young, A.P. "Britain's first new generation tramway", Light Rail & Modern Tramway, July 1992 (55: 655), p.173-179.
WIKIS
- Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Executive
- History of Manchester Metrolink
- Manchester Corporation Tramways
- Manchester Metrolink
- Museum of Transport, Greater Manchester
WEB SITES
Copyright Gabor Sandi 1998-2024
Disclaimer: Everything on this site was written and/or prepared at the author's discretion. The author has tried to be accurate where facts are presented, but this does not mean that these facts are necessarily accurate. People needing more reliable information should refer to appropriate sources presented, on the Internet or elsewhere, by authoritative professional or academic bodies.
To get in touch with the webmaster, send an e-mail to g_sandi at hotmail.com.
Flags on this site are from the FOTW Flags Of The World website.