Stockport is one of only a few boroughs in the region that’s not currently connected up to the expansive Metrolink network.
Work is currently ongoing to create a new state-of-the-art transport interchange in the town centre, and an important part of this includes infrastructure that will make the area “Metrolink ready” – but while the intention for trams to eventually travel to and from the town has been known for quite some time now, there hasn’t been much talk of timelines or when this would actually become a reality.
But now, Mayor Andy Burnham has finally given locals the update they’ve been waiting for.
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Andy Burnham insists he’s got ‘big ambition’ to take the Metrolink to Stockport / Credit: Flickr
In an interview with BBC Radio Manchester last week, the Greater Manchester Mayor assured residents that a “detailed update” on the case would be shared before 2024 arrives, and confirmed that Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) was currently looking at “precise schemes” to extend the network.
“Transport for Greater Manchester have been doing a detailed assessment of all of our ambitions for Metrolink,” Mr Burnham explained during his interview, “and the Metrolink to Stockport is a big part of that.
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“The new interchange that links to new infrastructure is going to be Metrolink ready, so it’s being built with that capability [and] what we’re doing now is looking at the precise schemes that we’ve got to expand Metrolink and looking at the cost of the, and we’re going to publish that work later this year.”
The Metrolink connection is set to form part of the new transport interchange in Stockport town centre / Credit: Stockport Council
Mr Burnham added that not only does TfGM and GMCA have “big ambition” to take the Metrolink to Stockport, but also to Middleton, Heywood, and up to Bury through the new Atom Valley site.
“We’ve got a bit more capital funding from the Government,” he continued.
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“We didn’t agree with their decision around high-speed rail, and east-west rail across the North, but as a result of that, they’ve increased some of our local capital so we’ve got some extra ability to do more.
“The long and short of it is that it’s a really important ambition for the city region, we’re going to give a really detailed update later this year on the business case for bringing Metrolink to Stockport so look out for that.”
Featured Image – TfGM
Boroughs
Police issue urgent warning following a rise in scam calls across Greater Manchester
Emily Sergeant
The public is being urged to ‘remain vigilant’ following a rise of scam calls across Greater Manchester.
Greater Manchester Police (GMP) says it has been made aware that scammers, who are impersonating police officers, are contacting people trying to convince them to hand over personal and sensitive information linked to their ownership of cryptocurrency.
From the numerous reports that GMP has received, one common method the offenders appear to be using is claiming that a suspect has been arrested and was found to be in possession of the victim’s personal documents – such as their passport, driving licence, or banking details.
On several occasions, fraudsters asked victims about their cryptocurrency accounts – specifically looking for their IDs, recovery phrases, and security codes.
GMP is urging the public to know that the police would never ask you to share this information or move your accounts.
The police have issued an urgent warning following a rise in scam calls across Greater Manchester / Credit: Rawpixel | Nordwood Themes (via Unsplash)
“These calls can appear convincing and are being made through spoofed GMP phone numbers but we are urging the public to remain vigilant, especially when providing sensitive information via phone calls,’ GMP said in a statement this week.
GMP is asking that the public ‘be wary’ of unsolicited calls, emails or messages relating to cryptocurrency investments or accounts, and that they never share passwords, recovery phrases, or security codes with anyone, as well as refusing to transfer any money or cryptocurrency to accounts suggested by a caller.
DS Reed, from GMP’s Cyber Crime Team, said these calls are ‘incredibly sophisticated’, and those responsible are targeting ‘vulnerable communities’
“We take offences of this nature incredibly seriously, and our Cyber Crime Team are working around the clock to understand how these offences have occurred, and how to prevent it from continuing,” DS Reed concluded.
Featured Image – Priscilla Du Preez (via Unsplash)
Boroughs
No trams to run on THREE major Greater Manchester lines for two weeks this month
Emily Sergeant
Widespread disruption is expected, as no trams will be running on three major Greater Manchester lines for two full weeks.
As the next phase of the ongoing £150m investment into Greater Manchester’s tram network gets under way later this month, it has been announced that essential improvement work is set to be be carried out on three major Metrolink lines across the region in a bid to make the network ‘safer’ and ‘more resilient and reliable’ for years to come.
From Monday 19 October to Sunday 1 November, tram improvement works will take place at Deansgate-Castlefield, and Trafford Bar.
Additional works will also take place in the city centre during this time, allowing Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) to keep closures of the tram network to a minimum.
During the dates above, no trams will run on the Altrincham, Trafford Centre, and Eccles lines.
No trams will be running on three major Greater Manchester line for two weeks this month / Credit: TfGM
A number of shuttle bus services will the running over the course of the two-week closure – with services arriving every 10 or 15 minutes, depending which line it’s on, and you can find a full list of these here.
Services operating on the East Didsbury and Manchester Airport lines will terminate at Firswood, and from Firswood, passengers will then need to board a replacement bus service to continue their journey into the city centre.
Services operating on the Rochdale line will terminate at Exchange Square, it has also been announced.
Services will resume on these lines from start of service on Monday 2 November.
However there will be some minor route changes through the city centre in place from Monday 2 to Wednesday 4 November, so it’s important to check your journey before you travel.
Emily Sergeant -
31st October 2023 
