Even before last weekend’s insane scenes, which left people ‘trapped’ inside a multi-storey, Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) had issued some travel advice.
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@MENnewsdesk I think have officially broken the record for the longest time trying to exit the Arndale Car Park on Saturday 26th November. It took us 5 hours 3 minutes to get from Level 12 to the exit. It is not fit for purpose Manchester Council!! FUMING! pic.twitter.com/VK6sTBX9N2
They said that the same weekend last year saw an 11% increase in peak journey times, with between 3pm and 7pm the busiest part of the day.
The first weekend of the Christmas Markets this year reportedly led to a 7% increase in vehicles around the city centre.
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TfGM encouraged people to use public transport or active travel wherever possible, predicting a massive upswing in visitor numbers coming to the city to shop, eat, drink, attend concerts and see the Christmas Markets.
TfGM outlined a few options available to cope with the increase in trips in the festive season.
Travel advice has been issued for the festive season. Credit: TfGM
There are thousands of free park and ride sites around Greater Manchester’s Metrolink network, with family tickets offering travel for one to three children and one or two adults from as little as £3.60.
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The new bus fare cap is in place now too, so a single trip will never cost more than £2 (or £1 for a child).
Congestion has increased in the city centre and inner ring road, with car trips returning back to pre-pandemic levels and some big road layouts that leave less space for cars (like the pedestrianisation of the Northern Quarter).
Travel advice for drivers is as follows:
Drive at a quieter time – this means avoiding driving to and around the city after 12pm on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays and between 3pm and 7pm during the week.
Know where road congestion may be – our data shows that journeys along the Mancunian Way typically have higher journey times during the week, and journeys along the northern section of the Inner Ring Road (Great Ancoats Street) have higher journey times at the weekend.
Take a different route – if you need to drive across the city at the weekend, it may be quicker to use Alan Turing Way/Mancunian Way.
Park on the same side of the city as your route if you can – driving across the city can add additional time to your journey, so if it’s an option for you, park in a car park closest to your route out of the city centre.
Check for quicker routes before every car journey on Google, Waze and other Apps. You can also use TfGM’s journey planner.
TfGM’s Get on Board Christmas campaign has helpfully mapped out festive offerings around the region – from food to free things to family activities – and includes travel advice on how to get there.
TfGM’s Head of Highways, Peter Boulton, said: “We want everyone coming to enjoy the many great attractions that the city centre and Trafford Centre have to offer to enjoy the festivities and have a great time.
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“The number of trips on our roads is back to where they were before the pandemic and that is leading to added congestion at key times – which means more people stuck in traffic.
“To avoid this, we’d encourage people to plan their journey by thinking about how they plan to get in, around and out of the city centre.
“Public transport is a great option, with frequent services and great value products as well as plenty of staff and information on hand to help you plan the perfect journey.”
Councillor Tracey Rawlins, Executive Member for Environment and Transport at Manchester City Council, said: “It has been great to see people returning to Manchester to enjoy what the festive season has to offer.
“We are expecting it to be increasingly busy the closer we get to Christmas which is why we’d urge people to plan ahead before they travel and stay up to date with the region’s transport network through the TfGM website.
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“We’d encourage people to use public transport as much as possible when travelling into Manchester as it is the most environmentally friendly method, as well as the best way of beating the traffic.”
Featured image:TfGM
Travel & Tourism
Rules around booking driving tests in UK change from today to make system ‘fairer’
Emily Sergeant
The rules around booking driving tests in the UK are officially set to change from today in a bid to make the system ‘fairer’.
The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) has now introduced new rules for car driving test bookings, putting learners ‘firmly in control’ of their own booking, as it is now against the law for third parties – including unofficial test booking and cancellation finder services, as well as driving instructors – to make bookings for someone else.
It will also be a breach of DVSA’s terms and conditions for the booking service for third parties to change, swap, or cancel a driving test for someone else.
Learners should only ever pay the official DVSA fee – which is £62 on weekdays and £75 on evenings, weekends and bank holidays.
The Government says the new rules aim to make booking driving tests ‘fairer’ for learner drivers.
While driving instructors will no longer be able to book tests on behalf of of learners, they will still be able to advise learners on when they are ready to take a test, as well as set their available times to prevent learners from booking tests at times that do not work for them.
Following on from changes to test alterations which were introduced at the end of March, from 9 June 2026, further restrictions will come into force limiting learners to moving their test only to one of the three nearest driving test centres.
The DVSA has also pledged to continue increasing driving examiner capacity to help provide more tests for learners to book.
“Our priority is to stop learners being exploited by third parties, put them in control of their driving test, and make the process fairer by clamping down on businesses that resell tests at inflated prices,” commented Beverley Warmington, who is the DVSA Chief Executive.
“These new measures help bring a halt to a system where the use of bots and third parties increases the amount some learners pay for a test and blocks test availability for many others.
“These measures will help free up appointments for genuine learners who are ready to take their test.”
Featured Image – Pxfuel
Travel & Tourism
What it’s like to stay in Manchester’s surprisingly affordable new mid-century hotel, Mollie’s
Daisy Jackson
There’s a fine line between ‘tastefully retro’ and ‘your nan’s spare room’, but the city’s newest hotel – Mollie’s Manchester – lands firmly in the former.
Designed by the same team behind Soho House, this (surprisingly affordable) mid-century hotel feels like stepping into the 1950s… if the 1950s had Pelotons and Dyson Airwraps in the wardrobes and enough aesthetic lighting to make everyone look faintly famous.
Whether you’re booking the classic rooms, usually priced from £109, or the huge suites, you can expect the same level of design detail.
Think terrazzo tiles, teak panelling, sage greens, burnt oranges, and interesting textures on every sittable surface.
And unlike some hotels that punish you for booking the ‘basic’ room by giving you a view of an air conditioning unit and a kettle balanced on a luggage rack, every room type at Mollie’s feels far more premium than the actual price tag.
For our stay, we were welcomed with batched cocktails and a mini fridge filled with treats like canned wine (which feels deeply respectful of modern traveller needs), plus a Grind coffee machine, fluffy robes, giant TVs, rainfall showers, and Cowshed toiletries.
If you end up on the better side of the hotel, you’ll have views of the city skyline from your bed, your sofa, or your bath.
Design details in a Mollie’s Manchester roomGrind coffee machine in the roomA Dyson Airwrap in the wardrobe of a studio roomAnd an actual Peloton bike in your room, tooThe beautiful bedroomA bunk room at Mollie’s Motel ManchesterViews from your bedA Mollie’s Motel suite
There are bunk rooms you can book too, where up to four people can climb into stylish wooden sleep pods, so cool I’m immediately planning a girls’ night out where someone can hand me a martini as I climb into a luxury bunk bed.
Downstairs in Mollie’s, which has taken over the former Granada Studios, you’ll find a cocktail bar that seems to pay homage to the building’s history.
Studio IV has vintage TV screens above the bar, music performances and DJs on stage, and cocktails inspired live music you can enjoy from a loungey vintage-patterned sofa.
Breakfast at Mollie’s ManchesterCocktails in Studio IVMollie’s Diner is open nowBurgers and fried chicken at Mollie’s DinerStudio IV cocktail barInside Mollie’s Motel & Diner Manchester
Then there’s Mollie’s Diner, which fully commits to recreating 1950s Americana. Inspired by a vintage Cadillac, the interiors are all deep burgundy leather booths, glowing globe lights, and polished chrome details.
The menu is exactly what you want from a diner like this: thick milkshakes, burgers, steaks, and fried chicken in the evenings; waffles, French toast, eggs any style in the mornings.
Mollie’s Manchester may be inspired by the Golden Age of Hollywood – but it’s heralding in a new Golden Age of hotel for Manchester too.
Daisy Jackson -
2nd December 2022 
