The line runs entirely on an old railway alignment without any street running. It runs north from Manchester Victoria and connects the suburbs of Cheetham Hill, Prestwich, Whitefield and Radcliffe. The entire route from Victoria to Bury is roughly 10 miles (16 km) long. Two services travel along the line, both starting at Bury, and terminating at Altrincham and Piccadilly respectively.
The Bury Line shortly before conversion to Metrolink, operated by a Class 504 unit.
The second part was opened in 1879. In order to connect the growing suburbs of Cheetham Hill, Prestwich and Whitefield, the L&YR obtained an act to construct a new line from Manchester in 1872 to the original ELR line at Radcliffe. Construction began in 1876 and was completed in 1879. Originally the line had only five intermediate stations at Crumpsall, Heaton Park, Prestwich, Whitefield and Radcliffe. Three more stations were added later: Woodlands Road, Bowker Vale and Besses o' th' Barn.[1]
In response to competition from trams, the line was electrified in 1916 using a unique 1200VDC side-contact third rail system, which remained in operation until the line was converted to Metrolink operation in 1991.[1] From 1959 until 1991, the line was operated by Class 504EMUs. In 1961 they were scheduled to cover the 9.75 mi (15.69 km) from Bolton Street to Victoria in 23 minutes and take 24 minutes in the other direction, running at 20 minute intervals for most of the day, but half-hourly on Sundays.[2] With an extra stop, the trams take 23 minutes uphill and 24 minutes downhill.[3]
In August 1953, the Irk Valley Junction rail crash occurred on the line near Manchester Victoria, resulting in ten deaths and 58 injuries. It was caused by an electric train overrunning a danger signal which collided with a steam train, resulting in the front carriage of the electric train crashing into the River Irk.[4]
The Bury line was identified by transport planners in the 1980s as one of the local railway lines in the Greater Manchester area which was used mostly for local traffic, and could therefore be split off from the main line network and converted to light-rail operation. It was chosen for conversion as part of the first phase of the Metrolink, along with the Manchester Piccadilly to Altrincham Line to the south of Manchester: The two previously unconnected lines were to be linked together by a new street-running line across Manchester city-centre, which included a branch to Manchester Piccadilly railway station. Trams on the Bury Line would thus continue from Victoria station into the city-centre, to either Altrincham or Piccadilly via a new exit into the streets to the south.[5]
Railway operations ended on 17 August 1991, in order for the line to be converted to Metrolink operation.[1] This mostly entailed removing the old third rail system and replacing it with a 750 volt DC overhead line system. Available funding only allowed for minimum upgrades to be made, and so most of the infrastructure such as the stations and track were changed little.[6]
The line became the first Metrolink line to open for business on 6 April 1992, initially between Bury and Victoria. On 27 April 1992 the city centre section opened, and trams then ran from Bury to Deansgate-Castlefield, the first station on the soon to be opened Altrincham leg of the network. The rest of the line to Altrincham opened on 15 June 1992, and the branch to Piccadilly opened on 20 July 1992.[7]
As of February 2017, trams between Bury and Manchester run as follows:[9]
A 12-minute interval service from Bury to Altrincham. Running during Monday to Saturday daytimes and early evenings only.
A 12-minute interval service from Bury to Piccadilly. Running during all operating hours.
These two services combined mean that trams between Bury and Manchester operate every six minutes during Monday to Saturday daytimes, and every 12 minutes during evenings and Sundays. During evenings, trams run to Piccadilly only, so journeys to Altrincham require a change of tram at Piccadilly Gardens.
Rolling stock
All services are operated by M5000 trams. Between 1992 and 2009, the line was operated by the original fleet of 26 T-68 trams. From 2009 the new fleet of M5000 trams was introduced, and these replaced the original T-68 trams. which were withdrawn from service during 2012–14.[10]
Route
The Bury Line was converted from a railway line beginning at Manchester Victoria station, and historically begins for the Metrolink at Victoria tram stop. The Bury Line was the first line to operate on the Metrolink system.
After Victoria, the line runs along Manchester Victoria East Junction with the railway lines, then passes underneath the main line via Collyhurst Tunnel. After leaving the tunnel, it travels on a viaduct, keeps left at the Irk Valley Junction (right for the Oldham and Rochdale Line) and passes by Queens Road depot, and serves its first stop at Queens Road, new for the Bury Line. It travels past the tram entrance to the depot, then serves a stop at Abraham Moss, also a new station that has not been converted from train operation. Woodlands Road tram stop, which was located between the two, was closed in 2013 to make way for the new stops serving more areas of North Manchester.
The route then runs past a redeveloped station: Crumpsall, and Bowker Vale, then travels underneath Heaton Park through a like-named tunnel, to reach Heaton Park stop. It then serves Prestwich, and travels on a bridge over both the M60 and Bury New Road to get to Besses o' th' Barn. It serves more stops at Whitefield and Radcliffe, and gets to a level crossing, before passing by the junction for the former Bury railway terminus at Bolton Street, and bears right to reach Bury Interchange at Bury tram stop. Bury Interchange railway station was opened in 1980 to replace Bury Bolton Street, providing easier access, as this site was much closer to the centre of the town.
