The idea that Hale can be the terminus of even a 5 tph tram-train service is daft. There is nowhere to terminate services there without obstructing the main line and causing problems with the adjacent level crossing close to the centre of the village. This cannot be replaced and couldn't cope with more services calling at or passing through the station. The current arrangements on the Altrincham line have worked adequately for over 30 years and should be left alone.
Quite so. Altrincham is situated in the middle of the town centre with the bus station just outside and is perfect for light and heavy rail services operationally, with two through-line platforms dedicated to heavy rail services, plus those same lines taking the freight train traffic and with two terminal-line platforms dedicated to light rail services, which do not disrupt any through rail freight traffic.
Presumably a facing crossover would be installed at the north end of Hale station so that trams can be terminate in the up platform ready for the next departure, thus not fouling the level crossing. Some trams will still terminate at Altrincham so it will not be 5tph. It is a bit of stretch to call the Chester line a 'main line' - an hourly DMU service and I count about 35 freight paths not all of which will run. As for 'Chelsea Tractors', surely the aim should be to be to reduce their use - their drivers wouldn't be seen dead in a bus but they would happily travel in a tram - as indeed they do from Altrincham, Sale &c.
There is already a trailing crossover north of Hale station, signalled to enable reversals from Platform 2 (southbound) back to Altrincham. The overlap beyond the signal on this platform that protects the level crossing is sufficient to allow a train from Altrincham to enter the platform with the barriers remaining raised.
Once you view the "proper Cheshire" geographical area to the south of Hale, such as Nether Alderley, Astbury, Over Peover etc where horse-riding, cricket and tennis are typical leisure time activities, the reality is that those people to whom you refer would neither be seen dead in a bus nor a tram, but will use their "Chelsea Tractors". I go back some forty years when my twin sons attended St Ambrose Collage in Hale Barns, when the younger pupils of the "Prep School" there were brought from home in such vehicles as a memory that stays with me and my late wife regarded her Land Rover Discovery with great affection.
Extending Metrolink to serve towns in Greater Manchester such as Heywood and Middleton that lost their rail links in the 1960s post-Beeching cuts is a much better aim than extending it to more areas south of the River Mersey.
In the late 1950-early 1960 time period, the passenger footfall at both those two named stations was very poor and both of those towns were well served by bus services to many destinations. Another comparative to draw was the closure of the Lancashire area municipal tram operations that had been withdrawn in an even earlier time period. From what I remember from a visit last year to those areas, many destinations could be reached by bus from Middleton bus station which is ideally situated in the town centre and that the Heywood heritage railway station which was built very close to the site of the original railway station is situated a considerable distance away from the town centre.
All true, but there are new factors now compared to 60+ years ago:
When I see such examples quoted, I think of the non-segregated street running Metrolink lines in certain areas of the Ashton line and areas such as the Hollyhedge Road section in Wythenshawe on the Airport line.
But that argument falls flat on its proverbial face when considering a journey by bus that can take people there in one fell swoop rather than a change to a tram route, especially during inclement weather. One example of this being an often-made bus journey from the Benchill area of Wythenshawe to Southern Cemetery that two elderly friends of the family make every weekend.
I agree Ashton line and also the outer parts of the Eccles line have significant street running, and this choice may have been regretted since. The street running on the Airport line is on rather less busy roads so may not be significant.
It depends on your point of view. Someone with plenty of time who maybe isn't very mobile would probably prefer a one-seat journey, but might not be happy at waiting a long time in the rain for a bus that's gone all the way to the city centre and been delayed by traffic. People with less time - who are often those using cars at present so should be targeted if the aim is to reduce traffic - might be happier with a simple change onto a tram that's probably faster and almost certainly more reliable.
There is a direct tram from Benchill to the Barlow Moor Road stop, which is closer to many parts of Southern Cemetery than Princess Road, but it isn't free for pensioners, unlike the bus service.
Benchill covers a wide area, not just a narrow strip adjacent to the tramway. The people to whom I referred live a fair distance away from the tramway. The bus they use runs direct to a bus stop on Princess Parkway and the grave that they visit in very near to the cemetery entrance there. The Barlow Moor Road tram stop is far away from that area which would then waiting for a bus nearest to the tram stop up to Princess Parkway and your idea would mean the use of two buses and a tram instead of the single bus stop journey that currently is made.
The long and very busy Hollyhedge Road section between Greenbrow Road and Brownley Road before the tram makes a 90 degree turn and has many side roads and quite a sizeable population on both sides of it sees trams passing up and down it, but has no tram stop on it that the people living adjacent to that road that residents can use.
Interesting. So there would have to be crossovers between Navigation Road and Altrincham to get the tram-trains on and off the Hale route, or the terminating platforms at Altrincham would have to burst through the buffer stops and join the route onward as they presumably did in pre-Metrolink days (or did they just go to Bowden carriage sidings?). The most operationally sensible option would be to bring the northbound trains and tram-trains through the most westerly platform, southbound through the most easterly, with the two platforms in between for terminating.
The heavy rail lines between Deansgate Junction and Skelton Junction have PSRs of 15mph Down and 20mph Up, because of the sharp curvature. If Navigation Road were converted back to shared double track, a 400m long northbound freight crawling across the flat junctions would inevitably delay the Metrolink service to Altrincham, with its 6 minute headways. Better to keep the segregated single lines, with Hale tram-trains crossing over to the heavy rail track at Deansgate Junction. Then there is no need to alter the track layout or signalling at Altrincham or Hale.
What is the benefit of tram-train services to Hale? I can only see downsides. Hale station's catchment is severely limited by its cramped siting and associated level crossing, which makes it unsuitable as a key transport node for "park and ride", a taxi rank or bus interchange, all of which are provided at Altrincham.
ORR statistics show Hale station had 95000 entries and exits in 2022-3, despite having only an hourly service. The station is in the centre of the village and has a large pedestrian catchment of housing that is beyond convenient walking distance from Altrincham Interchange. It is also close to Altrincham Grammar School for Boys, to which substantial numbers of students commute by Metrolink from Sale and Stretford. Extension of some Metrolink services from Altrincham to Hale would undoubtedly boost station usage substantially.
It is not currently possible to turn back trains from Knutsford. A new crossover and resignalling would be needed, which would be costly. Knutsford is well outside Greater Manchester and I doubt Cheshire East Council could find the resources needed to fund this work.
I would argue that you could re-purpose the car park to the east of the station as a bay platform.
Ahh, I didn't know there was one at hale already
