St Peter's Square tram stop

St Peter's Square is a tram stop in St Peter's Square in Manchester city centre, England. It opened on 27 April 1992 and is in Zone 1 of Greater Manchester's Metrolink light rail system.

St Peter's Square
Manchester Metrolink tram stop
General information
LocationSt Peter's Square, Manchester
England
Coordinates53°28′42″N 2°14′35″W / 53.4782°N 2.2430°W / 53.4782; -2.2430
Grid referenceSJ839979
Line(s)First City Crossing
Second City Crossing
Platforms4
Other information
StatusIn operation
Fare zone1
History
Original companyManchester Metrolink
Key dates
27 April 1992Opened
2015-2016Rebuilt
Passengers
2017/18Increase 7.010 million
2018/19Increase 8.711 million
2019/20Decrease 7.480 million
2020/21Decrease 1.307 million
2021/22Increase 4.930 million
Location
Map

The stop's platforms were extended in 2009, but later redevelopment in 2015–16 demolished the original two side platforms and replaced them with a twin-island platform layout, which allows for limited cross-platform interchange. The stop is the most used on the Metrolink network.[1]

History

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Plans for a rapid transit station in St Peter's Square were made in the 1970s; proposals for the abandoned Picc-Vic tunnel envisaged the construction of an underground station to serve both St Peter's and the neighbouring Albert Square.[2] The early proposals for an on-street light rail system in Manchester revived the idea of a station in the square. St. Peter's Square was one of the original city-centre stops to open when Metrolink started operations in 1992, when it consisted of two side [3] platforms and basic shelters. In common with most newly built Metrolink stops at the time, St. Peter's Square had two-level platforms, meaning only a short section of the platforms offered level boarding.

The stop was demolished and rebuilt with a full length platform and improved passenger facilities in November 2009. When a building called Elisabeth House, which had stood between Dickinson Street and Oxford Street since the 1970s, was demolished for redevelopment in 2011 as One St Peter's Square,[4] architects' plans were entered in a competition, which was modified in 2011 to incorporate proposals to improve the Metrolink station. In March 2012 a shortlist of two submissions was made.[5]

The stop closed after end of service on 25 June 2015 for 14 months to allow for a total redevelopment to incorporate trams on the new Second City Crossing.[6] The tram stop re-opened on 28 August 2016 as a four-platform interchange, comprising two island platforms, one for inbound services and the other for outbound. This offers same-direction cross-platform interchange. The stop was moved slightly north towards Princess Street from that of its old location, which was in front of Manchester Central Library. A number of trees were planted within the structure of the platforms to improve the look and feel of the space.[7] The Manchester Cenotaph was also relocated and the entire square has been redeveloped into a new public space. During the redevelopment works, a reduced service ran through the square on a single track[8] from Nicholas Street to Windmill Street[9] - but there were two 2-month long closures at the beginning and end of the project.[10] During these full closures, no Metrolink services ran through the square. The rebuilding work uncovered the remnants of an 18th century church crypt.[11]

Deansgate-Castlefield – St Peter's Square
 
 
 
Mosley Street
to Market Street
 
 
or Piccadilly Gardens
 
Second City Crossing
to Exchange Square
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Princess Street
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
D
 
 
 
 
 
 
A
St Peter's Square
Central Library
 
 
 
 
 
Peter Street
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Oxford Street
Midland Hotel
 
 
 
 
 
 
Windmill Street
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Manchester Central
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Great Bridgewater Street
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Deansgate-Castlefield
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  Deansgate
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Deansgate
 

Services

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Services run every 12 minutes on each route.

Preceding station   Manchester Metrolink Following station
Deansgate-Castlefield East Didsbury–Shaw (peak only) Exchange Square
East Didsbury–Rochdale Exchange Square
Deansgate-Castlefield Manchester Airport–Victoria Market Street
towards Victoria
Deansgate-Castlefield
towards Altrincham
Altrincham–Bury (peak only) Market Street
towards Bury
Altrincham–Piccadilly Piccadilly Gardens
towards Piccadilly
Altrincham–Etihad Campus (evenings and Sundays only) Piccadilly Gardens
Deansgate-Castlefield
towards Eccles
Eccles–Ashton (peak only) Piccadilly Gardens
Eccles–Ashton via MediaCityUK (off-peak only)
Deansgate-Castlefield
towards MediaCityUK
MediaCityUK–Etihad Campus (peak only) Piccadilly Gardens

References

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  1. ^ "Transport Statistics Greater Manchester 2017 Public Transport Section". TfGM. 5 December 2019. Retrieved 14 December 2019.
  2. ^ SELNEC PTE (October 1971), SELNEC Picc-Vic Line, SELNEC PTE publicity brochure
  3. ^ International2016-09-02T11:07:00+01:00, Railway Gazette. "Manchester Metrolink opens expanded St Peter's Square stop". Railway Gazette International. Retrieved 24 May 2024.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  4. ^ "Elizabeth House". Cool Manchester. Retrieved 24 March 2012.
  5. ^ One St Peter's Square; E-architect
  6. ^ "St Peter's Square Metrolink stop to reopen after a year". BBC News. 27 August 2016. Archived from the original on 28 August 2016. Retrieved 14 March 2020.
  7. ^ "One month to go for St Peter's Square tram works". Place North West. 27 July 2016. Archived from the original on 28 July 2016.
  8. ^ "Next stop, St. Peter's Square" (PDF). 8 April 2016. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 August 2016. Retrieved 15 March 2020.
  9. ^ GM Trainspotting (26 June 2016). Metrolink Driver's Eye View - Market Street to Deansgate-Castlefield. Retrieved 18 May 2024 – via YouTube.
  10. ^ "St Peter's Square stop closure: Metrolink and shuttle bus services". Transport for Greater Manchester. TfGM. 29 June 2015. Archived from the original on 8 August 2015.
  11. ^ Helen Heath (15 February 2017). "Bishop of Manchester rededicates cross in St Peter's square". thenorthernquota.org. Retrieved 14 March 2020.
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