Metrolink works setback

Ben Bland

July 09, 2009

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IMPROVEMENT work on the Metrolink in the city centre will over-run by TWO MONTHS - but passengers will NOT get any reduction in fares to make up for the extra disruption.

GMPTE's Director of Metrolink boss Philip Purdy admitted the project had been set back in an interview with the MEN's sister television station, Channel M.

'A bit longer'

Mr Purdy explained the extra time was needed to finish the road surfaces around the new tracks. He said: "To make sure that it looks part of the city and enhances the city, it just takes a little bit longer to finish off." Work on upgrading the tracks in the city centre began in April and was expected to finish by September, to coincide with the end of the summer holidays.

Ripped-up

As part of a £100m project the 16-year-old tracks are being ripped up and replaced to improve services. Since April, trams between St Peter's Square and Victoria have not been running - but free shuttle buses have been laid on between some of the main stations. Mr Purdy admitted it was an inconvenience but, despite the delay, no reduction in fares will be offered to passengers.

'Good service'

He said: "As far as the city centre is concerned, we believe that we are providing a good service. We need to keep the income coming, because the money from the passengers is going into this work. If we start to make things free or cut fares down, then we haven't got as much funding to make the improvements.

'Frustration'

"So it is a balancing act and I know there'll be some frustration out there but I think we're doing the right thing." Another phase of work will begin next month, which will close the lines running from the city centre to Altrincham and Eccles, and is expected to finish by the end of August.

'Bus'

Details of a bus replacement service for those routes are being finalised and it is understood that passengers on those routes will be offered lower fares.

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petan, openshaw (09/07/2009 at 19:09)

the amount of time it takes the bus to get from Piccadilly to Victoria I can walk it The shuttle buses do not run as frequent as the trams did So I for one will be continue to walk between the two stations once the trams are back running

the majority must be ignored, not north manchester (10/07/2009 at 00:00)

This all begs the question, if the trams can be withdrawn so regularly why have them in the first place they are not really needed and not a critical factor in the big "plan". The went down for three months two years and again this August. The reason for the city centre closure was poor contruction and design in the first place

drew-peacock, Our House (10/07/2009 at 00:34)

Joke.
Does this mean that the tracks will be ripped up and replaced every 16 years or what?

chillbill, oldham (10/07/2009 at 08:27)

I wil not be too surprised to see the closure extended again. I see the works going on near Shude Hill Bus Station - and It never changes (to me) from week to week. Its snails pace.

Mad Welsh Scotsman, Cadishead (10/07/2009 at 08:42)

Typical, a load of bollards, cones and fencing etc, distruption everywhere and two workmen sat on their backsides chatting

Tezza, Tyldesley (10/07/2009 at 08:54)

surprise surprise

PB Crumpsall, Manchester (10/07/2009 at 09:41)

The entire track From Bury-Altrincham was repleaced Two years ago, why was the City centre not done at the same time ??? I use the Trams everyday, and the service is a COMPLETE JOKE - Customer Service is non existant ! The service should never be extended they can"t run the Two lines they have got, why subject more people to this "Alleged Service " - Laughable !

The Higher Openshaw Exile, MANCHESTER (10/07/2009 at 09:56)

16 years!!! How did the Victorian lines last over a hundred years?

Dave Sherwood, Irlam (10/07/2009 at 10:10)

Anybody remember this statement by a member of Manchester Labour run council "With the introduction of a tram system in Manchester it will cut all congestion and help the commuters to arrive at work without any problems.A tram system will need minimum maintainance and cause almost no disruption to members of the travelling public."

MPs gravy train, UK (10/07/2009 at 10:37)

I have never had any confidence in the GMPTE...ever since they spent a quarter of a million of our pounds on a bus shelter in Eccles. No wonder nobody wanted them to have £3bn to waste from a proposed con charge.

How do we unelect the GMPTE board and its managers?

Mike S, Manchester (10/07/2009 at 10:50)

It's two sets of rails for God's sake and a bit of road on either side. how on earth could this overrun by two months? It's an absolute disgrace. I agree with the other comment about Shudehill - I walk past there twice a day and nothing seems to be progressing.

And as for the replacement buses, they sit at every stop for about 10-15 minutes before they finally depart. It's quicker walking for anyone but the infirm, or catching one of the free buses which pretty much service all the stops in town anyway. The replacement buses are a waste of money and only serve to clog up the roads yet further.

Ace , manchester (10/07/2009 at 11:09)

The british way of working?anywhere else in the world they would be working 24/7 to get things done quickly but in britain ,its tools down at 3-30 lets wash our hands and go home and no working at weekends.weve been having pipes laid near where i live ,they have a crew who digs holes a crew who moves the dirt a crew who filles the holes in after a crew who does the repais then a crew who puts the tarmac down .Its a never ending job just like when they put fibre optics a few years ago for cable TV ,i live in a brand new house but cannot get cable tv because the cables were not laid years ago????? british planning again.

George Roper (10/07/2009 at 11:18)

Terrible service and poor management

Luc P (10/07/2009 at 13:04)

I personally wrote to Philip Purdy and got the same ignorant response that we (so called customers) have to keep paying £5.40 a day for a rubbish service (google Metrolink passenger charter, it makes for an interesting read, maybe Philip Purdy has forgotten about his passenger charter, he clearly needs to have a good read of it again!!!). The trams are hot, filthy and over crowded, slow and are quite frankly a poor service and Philip Purdy should be ashamed, animals wouldn’t be transported in such conditions.
As for the end of the working day were we get herded in to a small area at St Peters Square to await the guiding on to the platform by so called ticket inspectors, screaming at you to ‘’move down the platform’’. Absolute rubbish. It's more like a stampede and you get pushed and shoved! Maybe Philip Purdy would like to use the metrolink during peak times? See how he likes it? But then I imagine he drives in, in his all expenses car with a fuel card and free parking, nice and stress free.......... Really I think Philip Purdy should give us customers something back rather than taking the so called customers money all the time, patting us on the head and herding us off on to the trams (that’s if they turn up), it would be nice and a gesture of good will, maybe show that he cares about his customers.
I for one no longer use the tram and now take the train, clean, cool and I can get a seat and not have my face in someone’s arm pit.

Marquis de Sade et la petit monge tout (10/07/2009 at 15:11)

Well I do hope you can still get jammed in like a sardine in the mornings ! It wouldn't feel like the same old metro without that.

Marquis de Sade et la petit monge tout (10/07/2009 at 15:43)

Oh and I hope the Big Issue sellers still use it to get back to Hale Barns.

A Bus Driver (11/07/2009 at 09:16)

Ace.........The british way of working?anywhere else in the world they would be working 24/7 to get things done quickly"
They are working on the tracks after 3pm. They have been in Piccadilly Gardens at at least 9pm all this week and Mosley street sunday eves when I have walked passed.

Horatio Dogsbody, Flixton (11/07/2009 at 13:32)

Scrap the Toy-town tramway and give us back a proper railway system again, linked together by a tunnel under the city-centre.

Gankaku69, Manchester and Proud of it (11/07/2009 at 18:04)

People wonder why so many people use their cars.

erttd (12/07/2009 at 07:21)

So who is it at GMPTE who can't count?

The trams have been running for 6 years and regularly repaired, so they knew what they had to do and where. Having managed multiple projects valued at billions, I am aware of the difficulties of juggling it all but this is incompetence. There is no sensible reason for this project to be late or delayed other than the management have no idea of how to manage a project.

Every time I walk to Piccadilly station, I wonder why the access to GMPT offices are so pedestrian unfriendly and now I know - they are no idea what they are doing or how to do it.

When is someone going to be sacked for not managing to do their job properly?

regards

D H (14/07/2009 at 15:44)

Looking at the speed of work progress it doesn't take a genius to see that there was never a snowflake chance in hell that the track replacement work would be completed within the stated time. Did GMPTE or whatever they call themselves now, put a penalty clause in the contract? I doubt it. They claim that the rail replacement work was completed on time on the Bury line, it wasn't! they only recently completed a stretch North of Victoria Station which was never done in the original phase. Now as far as the bus replacement service in the City centre is concerned, this is an absolute disgrace. At Victoria the infrequent bus stops almost outside the modern Co-op building rather in Hunts bank close to the Victoria Metrolink terminus. Today, the bus driver told me it takes half an hour to get to St Peter's Square! This is not a replacement for a tram service which took no more than ten minutes from Victoria.

Are the announcers on the Metrolink system unable to say or pronounce the word tram, it's always a vehicle. Maybe they aren't really sure what they are other than they run on rails.

flipper, anywhere else but manchester please (15/08/2009 at 22:01)

Just seen the works and there is not a cat in hells chance of Metrolink being finished this year LoL

Jon Doe, Sale (30/08/2009 at 12:56)

Absolutely disgraceful mismanagement on the part of GMPTE. To charge full price for the inadequate replacement bus service just adds insult to injury. You would think they would use this opportunity to sort out the bus/tram problem on Mosley St, but it looks as if things are going to carry on as usual. If this kind of debacle is going to continue to happen every few years, I may as well start up a canal taxi business!

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