Ordsall Chord

"Ordsall Lane Chord" redirects here. For the former railway station whose site was nearby, see Ordsall Lane railway station.

Ordsall Chord
Overview
Status	Proposed
Locale	United Kingdom (Greater Manchester North West England)
Stations	0
Operation
Opened	2016 (proposed)
Owner	Network Rail

[v · d · e]Ordsall Chord
Legend To Leeds Manchester Victoria Salford Central To Bolton To Liverpool Ordsall Chord To Warrington Deansgate Manchester Oxford Road Manchester Piccadilly To Stockport and Sheffield

The Ordsall Chord (also known as the Ordsall Lane Chord, Ordsall Curve or Castlefield Curve) is a short proposed railway line in the Ordsall area of Greater Manchester. When constructed, it will provide a direct rail link between Manchester Piccadilly and Manchester Victoria. It is also expected to increase capacity in the region and reduce journey times into Manchester.

The chord was first proposed in the late 1970s. Parliamentary powers for its construction were received in 1979, but the project was cancelled. Network Rail revived the proposal in 2010 as part of its Manchester Hub proposal. Funding for its construction was announced in the 2011 United Kingdom budget. It is expected to be open by 2016, and will cost around £85 million to construct.

Background

By the late 20th century, the rail network in Manchester had become insufficient to support the amount of capacity required. One problem was the lack of a direct link between the main stations at Piccadilly and Victoria, causing many trains to terminate at Victoria, which takes up excessive platform space.^[1] One proposed solution, the Picc-Vic tunnel between the two stations, was proposed in the 1970s but rejected on cost grounds in 1977.^[2][3]

Proposal

The Ordsall Chord would provide a direct link between Piccadilly and Victoria, allowing all trains on the TransPennine Express routes to Leeds, Bradford Interchange, Newcastle and Liverpool to run via Victoria, reducing journey times to each. It would also improve rail access to Manchester Airport, which at present cannot be reached easily from Victoria.^[4]

Journey times to Leeds would be reduced by 14 minutes on average; those to Bradford by ten, Sheffield by eight and Liverpool by 17. Railfreight access to yards in the Trafford Park area would also be improved.^[1]

In its most recent incarnation, the chord is part of a larger series of investments proposed by Network Rail in the Manchester Hub Study of 2010. The complete scheme would cost around £530 million to implement, of which £85 million would be spent on the Ordsall Chord, and would allow around 700 extra trains per day to operate into Manchester. The chord would be built on brownfield land.^[5]

History

A new curve at Ordsall linking Piccadilly to Victoria was first proposed in the late 1970s; it was then known as the Castlefield Curve after the nearby district of the same name.^[6] A bill relating to the chord's constructuion proposal was debated in the House of Commons in June 1979, receiving support from some members, although it was also opposed on the grounds that a direct tunnel would provide a better alternative.^[7] By the end of the year, British Rail had received parliamentary powers to construct the line.^[8] It was expected to cost around £10 million; however, following opposition from local politicians and a shortage of funding, the project was never started.^[9] By 1985 it had been officially abandoned.^[10]

The proposal was included in a draft Network Rail report in 2005 as a possible solution to increased overcrowding in the region, at an expected cost of £44 million.^[9] In February 2010, the project was revived by Network Rail as part of the Manchester Hub Study, with the intention of receiving government funding by around 2014.^[1] On 23 March 2011 George Osborne, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, announced £85 million worth of funding for the scheme as part of the 2011 budget.^[11] The announcement came as a surprise as funding was not expected for several years, and was welcomed by the Greater Manchester Integrated Transport Authority.^[12]

References

1. ^ ^{a b c} Wright, Robert (17 February 2010). "Extra track suggested to ease Manchester's rail bottlenecks". Financial Times. http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/eef5e63a-1b62-11df-838f-00144feab49a.html#axzz1HbrSIVUu. 
2. ^ Salter, Alan (12 February 2008). "Rail tunnel vision revived". Manchester Evening News. http://menmedia.co.uk/manchestereveningnews/news/s/1036098_rail_tunnel_vision_revived. 
3. ^ English Structure Planning. Routledge. 1983. p. 45. ISBN 0-85086-094-6. 
4. ^ "£200 million boost for rail in Budget proposals". Railnews.co.uk. 23 March 2011. http://www.railnews.co.uk/news/general/2011/03/23-budget-boost-for-rail-in.html. 
5. ^ "George Osborne confirms £85m Piccadilly - Victoria rail link in Budget". Manchester Evening News. 23 March 2011. http://menmedia.co.uk/manchestereveningnews/news/s/1413410_george_osborne_confirms_85m_piccadilly__victoria_rail_link_in_budget. 
6. ^ Appleton, Dave (20 February 2010). "Multi-million pound bid to improve Rochdale station". Manchester Evening News. http://menmedia.co.uk/rochdaleobserver/news/s/1193256_multimillion_pound_bid_to_improve_rochdale_station. 
7. ^ "BRITISH RAILWAYS (No. 2) BILL (By Order)". theyworkforyou.com. 26 June 1979. http://www.theyworkforyou.com/debates/?id=1979-06-26a.365.0. 
8. ^ "Summary of Events: 1974 to 1985". gmts.co.uk. Greater Manchester's Museum of Transport. 2010. http://www.gmts.co.uk/explore/history/summary19741985.html. 
9. ^ ^{a b} Broadbent, Steve (February 24 2010). "How do you solve a problem like Manchester?". Rail (638). 
10. ^ "British Railways Bill (By Order)". Hansard. 19 March 1985. http://hansard.millbanksystems.com/commons/1985/mar/19/british-railways-bill-by-order. 
11. ^ Rentoul, John (24 March 2011). "The speech: What Osborne said – and what he really meant". The Independent. http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/the-speech-what-osborne-said-ndash-and-what-he-really-meant-2251132.html. 
12. ^ "Budget boost for Northern Hub rail plans". gmpte.com. Greater Manchester PTE. 23 March 2011. http://www.gmpte.com/2009_news.cfm?news_id=9006405?submenuheader=3. 

External links

• Network Rail - £530M RAIL INVESTMENT PROPOSED FOR NORTH ENGLAND CITIES
• BBC News - Manchester rail link welcomed as a 'boost' to region

Coordinates: 53°28′42″N 2°15′37″W / 53.47842°N 2.26033°W / 53.47842; -2.26033