Burton Road tram stop

Burton Road is a stop on the South Manchester Line of Greater Manchester's light rail Metrolink system. It is located on Burton Road, on the border of the suburbs of Withington and West Didsbury in Manchester, England.

Burton Road
Metrolink station
General information
LocationWithington, Manchester
England
Coordinates53.42924°N 2.24074°W / 53.42924; -2.24074
Grid referenceSJ840924
Line(s)South Manchester Line
Platforms2
Other information
StatusIn operation
Fare zone3
Key dates
23 May 2013Opened
Services
Preceding station Manchester Metrolink Following station
West Didsbury
towards East Didsbury
 East Didsbury–Shaw and Crompton Withington
towards Shaw and Crompton
East Didsbury–Rochdale Withington
towards Rochdale Town Centre
Location

The tram stop was opened on 23 May 2013. It was built in a cutting on a section of abandoned railway which was re-opened for light rail operation. The line was originally opened in 1880 as the Manchester South District Line, which ran trains from Manchester Central railway station. The route was closed in 1967, but was re-opened in the 21st century as part of the Metrolink network. Trams now run from East Didsbury through Burton Road to Manchester city centre tram stops and on to Rochdale Town Centre.[1][2][3][4]

Service pattern

History
See also: History of Manchester Metrolink

In 1880 the Midland Railway opened the new Manchester South District Line which ran from Throstle Nest Junction, Old Trafford to Heaton Mersey.[5] The line north of Chorlton Junction (with the Manchester, Sheffield & Lincolnshire Railway's line to Fallowfield) was later operated by the Cheshire Lines Committee from 1891 when the Fallowfield line opened, and rail service ran out of Manchester Central station to the southern suburbs.[6] South of Chorlton-cum-Hardy railway station, the line ran south-east through the area with the first station at Withington railway station on the corner of Lapwing Lane and Palatine Road (Withington station was renamed Withington & Albert Park in 1884 and then Withington & West Didsbury in 1915).[7][8] Withington & West Didsbury station closed in July 1961, although British Rail trains continued to use this route until 1969, when the entre line was closed as part of the Beeching cuts.[8]

In 1984, Greater Manchester Council and Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Executive announced the Project Light Rail scheme to develop a new light rail/tram system by re-opening use of disused railway lines in the region, including the route from Chorlton to East Didsbury.[9] The first phase of the Manchester Metrolink system opened in 1992, but the Manchester South line was not included. Plans to re-open the line for light rail use were proposed in the early 1980s,[4]but these proposals failed several times due to problems securing funding.[10]

With limited funding available, re-opening the former Midland line took place in segments; in 2006, it was announced that the Metrolink network would extend as far St Werburgh's Road in Chorlton (opened 2011),[11][12] and in 2008 with funding from the Greater Manchester Transport Fund, the line was extended to East Didsbury.[2][13][3] Tram tracks were laid along the former trackbed, and a new tram stop was constructed by the Burton Road bridge in Withington. Burton Road Metrolink stop opened on 23 May 2013.[1][14] Further south along the line, the original Withington railway station was not re-opened, but was replaced with a new Metrolink stop, West Didsbury, in close proximity to the old station site.

Location

Burton Road tram stop is located in the area between Withington and West Didsbury next to Burton Road. It is the closest Metrolink stop to Withington Village; the preceding stop on the line is named Withington but is located approximately 1 mile (1.6 km) from the suburb of Withington.[15] It is the closest stop to Withington Community Hospital.

  • Midland Railway lines in Manchester
    Midland Railway lines in Manchester
  • The station, on its opening day
    The station, on its opening day
  • The station, looking towards West Didsbury
    The station, looking towards West Didsbury
  • Map showing Metrolink tram stops in the vicinity of Withington Village
    Map showing Metrolink tram stops in the vicinity of Withington Village

References
  1. "Early doors for East Didsbury's new Metrolink line". Transport for Greater Manchester. Archived from the original on 20 July 2015. Retrieved 14 May 2013.
  2. Linton, Deborah (13 May 2009). "£1.4bn transport deal unveiled". Manchester Evening News. Retrieved 17 May 2009.
  3. "Metrolink: back on track?". BBC Manchester. 13 May 2009. Retrieved 17 May 2009.
  4. Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Executive (1984), Light Rapid Transit in Greater Manchester, Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Executive - publicity brochure
  5. J. Gough. The Midland Railway - A Chronology. Railway & Canal Historical Society, 1989, p. 198.
  6. Gough,Midland Railway, p.198.
  7. Sussex, Gay; Helm, Peter (1988). Looking Back at Withington and Didsbury. Timperley: Willow Publishing. p. 22. ISBN 0-946361-25-8.
  8. "Withington and West Didsbury". Disused Stations: Closed Railway Stations in the UK. Retrieved 27 May 2012.
  9. Ogden, Eric; Senior, John (1991). Metrolink: Official Handbook. Glossop, Derbyshire: Transport Publishing Company. pp. 26–27. ISBN 0-86317-164-8.
  10. "Government scraps trams extension". BBC News. 20 July 2004. Retrieved 28 December 2008.
  11. "Metrolink extension is announced". BBC News. 6 July 2006. Retrieved 28 December 2008.
  12. "Metrolink - the little Bang?". BBC Manchester. 7 July 2006. Archived from the original on 21 June 2010. Retrieved 28 December 2008.
  13. "Tram line extension is approved". BBC News. 13 May 2009. Retrieved 17 May 2009.
  14. "Metrolink - South Manchester line". Transport for Greater Manchester. Retrieved 19 May 2013.
  15. Kirby, Dean (3 June 2013). "Calling tram stop Withington is misleading, claim residents". Manchester Evening News. Archived from the original on 8 June 2017. Retrieved 8 June 2017.
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