A number of road closures are set to be put in place for 2023’s edition of the Manchester Caribbean Carnival this weekend.
With the community hub of Alexandra Park and the surrounding city streets once again set to welcome the massively-popular cultural event this Saturday and Sunday, just as it has done for close to the last 50 years, Manchester City Council and Greater Manchester Police (GMP) have now confirmed a number of road closures and safety measures they want the community to be aware of.
Kicking off from 12pm and running right through until 8pm on both days of the free two-day event, this year’s Carnival is particularly important and significant as it will be commemorating 75 years since the arrival of the Windrush generation.
And after what was the resounding success of last year’s event – which attracted over 60,000 attendees – organisers say this year’s Carnival will be “even bigger and better”.
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Here’s everything you need to know about road closures and police presence.
Manchester Caribbean Carnival 2023 is taking place on Saturday 12 and Sunday 13 August / Credit: Manchester Caribbean Carnival
Which roads will be closed? And on what days?
Manchester City Council has confirmed that a number of roads will be closed across the two days.
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For J’Ouvert, which is taking place on Saturday 12 August, there will be a number of rolling road closures in place from 7am to 9am at the following:
Moss Lane East (Princess Rd to Upper Lloyd Street)
Upper Lloyd Street (Moss Lane East to Great Western Street)
Great Western Street (Upper Lloyd Street to Quinney Crescent)
Quiney Crescent (Great Western Street to Alexandra Road)
Alexandra Road (Quiney Crescent to Claremont Road)
For the Carnival itself, also on Saturday 12 August, a full closure of Claremont Road from Quinney Crescent to Alexandra Road will be in place from 7am to 4pm for the set-up of the event and the dispersal of crowds, while the rest of the day between 11am to 2:30pm will see rolling road closures at the following:
11:30am to 12:50pm
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Yarburgh (Alexandra Road to Withington Road)
Withington Road (Yarburgh to Moss Lane West)
12:15pm to 1:10pm
Moss Lane West (Withington Road to Moss Lane East)
Moss Lane East (Moss Lane West to Princess Road)
12:40pm to 1:35pm
Moss Lane East (Princess Road to Upper Lloyd Street)
Upper Lloyd Street (Moss Lane East to Claremont Rd)
Claremont Road (Upper Lloyd to Quinney Crescent)
Manchester Caribbean Carnival is a family-friendly celebration of Caribbean culture / Credit: Manchester Caribbean Carnival
Will there be increased police presence?
Greater Manchester Police says it will be “significantly increasing” its policing operation surrounding the Manchester Caribbean Carnival this weekend.
It’s been confirmed that additional covert and overt officers will be deployed across a range of policing roles – including neighbourhood policing, spotting and intelligence gathering, licensing, public safety, traffic, mounted, and more to provide the “capacity and capability” to deter, detect, and manage situations in a way that “keeps people safe” and “minimises harm and impact”.
What are the police saying?
Superintendent Arif Nawaz, who is one of the leads for the Manchester Caribbean Carnival policing operation at GMP, has warned criminals to “stay away from the event” this weekend.
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He said in a statement: “The vast majority of people attend Carnival to simply enjoy the festivities and police preparations are in place to enable them to do so safely.
“But the trend of unofficial after-parties, involving gatherings outdoors following Carnival events, has unfortunately witnessed antisocial behaviour, criminal activity, and serious violence, and these large gatherings cause unacceptable issues for our communities and impede emergency vehicles from keeping people safe and well.
“Officers will be supporting licensing officials to prevent illegal street vendors from setting up and enforcing laws around this activity [and] we are working with neighbouring forces… to act on intelligence to search and intercept anyone in the area suspected to have criminal intentions.”
This year’s Carnival will mark 75 years since the arrival of the Windrush generation / Credit: Manchester Caribbean Carnival
Superintendent Nawaz urged Carnival-goers to “please follow the direction of officers who are committed to keeping people safe”.
He continued: “If you see anything suspicious, feel unsafe, or have any concerns which require police assistance or support, speak with one of our officers, or you can also dial 101 or report something you’ve seen or heard online via www.gmp.police.uk.
Full list of road closures set to be in place for Manchester Day 2024
Emily Sergeant
Manchester Day is back for 2024 this weekend, and the full list of road closures set to be in place has been confirmed.
Now that schools are officially out across Greater Manchester, and the summer holidays are well and truly here, the hugely-popular Manchester Day is making a return once again this Saturday 27 July, and as always, it’s set to be “the day summer officially starts” in the city centre – with a massive celebration of “all things Mancunian” on the cards.
The theme of this year’s annual event is ‘Let The Games Begin’, and it’s inspired by the international summer of sport, just 2024 Olympics kicks off over in Paris.
The day will be packed full of free events and activities to get involved with.
Some city centre roads will be closed on Friday 26 and Saturday 27 July for Manchester Day.
These will include:
🛣️Deansgate 🛣️St Ann Street 🛣️St Mary’s Gate 🛣️Market Street 🛣️King Street
— Manchester City Council (@ManCityCouncil) July 21, 2024
But of course, in order for the all the fun to go ahead as safely as possible, and as tends to be the case for events like these, Manchester City Council says it will need to make some temporary road closures to facilitate it.
The full list of road closures has now been confirmed by the Council, and there’s some major city centre thoroughfares set to be out of action.
Here’s everything you need to know.
Manchester Day is back for 2024 to celebrate the international summer of sport / Credit: Manchester City Council
Manchester Day 2024 – Road Closures
Saturday 27 July
From 6am to 11:59pm, Manchester City Council has confirmed that the following roads will be closed:
Deansgate (Manchester Cathedral to John Dalton Street) – access will be maintained to Marks and Spencer’s car park and Number One Deansgate.
St Ann Street (Deansgate to Cross Street)
St Mary’s Gate (Exchange Street to Deansgate)
St Mary’s Street (Southbridge Street to Deansgate)
Market Street (Exchange Street to Cross Street)
Fennel Street (Corporation Street to Cathedral Street) – access will be maintained for morning deliveries only.
Cathedral Street (Fennel Street to Exchange Square) – access will be maintained for morning deliveries only.
Cateaton Street (Exchange Square to Deansgate)
Barton Square (St Ann’s Square to St Ann Street)
King Street (Cross Street to Deansgate) – no access for deliveries.
All accessible bays, bus lanes, and taxi ranks within the closed areas will also be suspended during from 6pm on Friday 26 July to 11:59pm on Saturday 27 July.
The parking suspensions set to be in place are:
Deansgate (Manchester Cathedral to John Dalton Street)
St Ann Street – including the bays outside St Ann’s Church (Deansgate to Cross Street)
St Mary’s Gate (Exchange Street to Deansgate)
St Mary’s Street (Southbridge Street to Deansgate)
Southgate (St Mary’s Street to King Street West)
Market Street (Exchange Street to Cross Street)
Fennel Street (Corporation Street to Cathedral Street) – access will be maintained for morning deliveries only.
Cathedral Street (Fennel Street to Exchange Square) – access will be maintained for morning deliveries only.
Cateaton Street (Exchange Square to Deansgate)
Victoria Street (Cathedral Approach to Deansgate)
Todd Street (Corporation Street to Station Approach)
King Street (Spring Gardens to Southgate)
South King Street (Ridgefield to Deansgate)
Barton Square (St Ann’s Square to St Ann Street)
King Street West (Deansgate to St Mary’s Parsonage)
St James’s Square (John Dalton Street to South King Street)
Cross Street (King Street to Corporation Street)
Museum Street (Peter Street to Windmill Street)
Marsden Street (Cheapside to Brown Street)
Manchester Day 2024: Let The Games Begin! will take over the city centre on Saturday 27 July from 12pm-6pm.
Check out everything you need to know ahead of the event here.
‘Complex’ Metrolink repairs to the Rochdale via Oldham line could take weeks to complete
Emily Sergeant
Work currently underway on the Rochdale via Oldham line is expected to take several weeks to complete.
Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) has confirmed that land movement affecting the Metrolink network near Derker has now “slowed”, and this means that detailed ground investigations and temporary repair works have been able to get underway.
In order for trams to run again on the crucial line from the city centre to the two major Greater Manchester towns, TfGM says that a small section of track has to be moved back – also known as ‘slewed’ – into its original position.
The overhead line poles also need to be repaired too, the transport operator revealed.
Rochdale line update
Land movement affecting the Metrolink network near Derker has slowed, enabling detailed ground investigations and temporary repair works to get underway.
To get trams running again, a small section of track has to be moved back into its original position… pic.twitter.com/byERjitdi1
Unfortunately though, due to the “complex” nature of these works, and despite the fact that TfGM says it’s actively looking to “accelerate” the repairs, the project is expected to take up to five weeks to complete in full.
On top of this, the detailed ground investigations will also establish whether any further work to strengthen foundations beneath the track will be needed at a later date.
TfGM has apologised for the inconvenience caused to passengers.
‘Complex’ Metrolink repairs to the Rochdale via Oldham line could take weeks to complete / Credit: TfGM
Speaking on the scale of works currently underway, and how long he expects them to continue for, Pete Sommers, who is TfGM’s Network Director for Metrolink, said: “I’m sorry for the impact this is having, and will continue to have, on people’s journeys.
“We are working to get trams running through the area again, but this remains a complex and challenging issue and it could still be a few weeks before this happens.
“We will of course keep passengers updated, and I’d encourage people to check our social media channels and website for the latest information and advice.”