North Manchester is finding that new growth investment will bring 35,000 new residents into the city area through the creation of new neighbourhoods, with an accompanying tram stop that will provide links from the new development to the city centre directly.
A new North Manchester tram stop is said to be able to serve 15,000 new homes. The tram stop would be located north of Victoria in The Sandhills, Collyhurst. The plans for this tram stop come from the idea that 15,000 new homes will be constructed over the next 15 to 20 years as part of the Victoria North Project.
The new tram stop is a welcome change in supporting public transport, as recently many involved with Metrolink have voiced their concern of the trams being underused and underfunded: "Metrolink has never been properly subsidised which is why fares are higher than we'd like. If the Government won't make up the deficit, we have to find some money through council tax or somewhere. If one of the purposes of reducing fares on buses is to get more passengers, then maybe we've got to do the same thing with trams.”
"I think all of us accept that if trams could receive the same subsidy as trains and buses fares would be much lower. But we shouldn't start cutting Metrolink, it's taken us so long to expand the network, the last thing we want to see is a reduction."
The development overall is a positive sign of growth in the northern region- but what exactly is the Victoria North Project?
The Victoria North Project is a development based in North Manchester that is set to bring 35,000 people into the city centre through the creation of new neighbourhoods. Over £120 million has been spent on the project so far by development company Far East Consortium (FEC)- and a further £3.88billion is expected to be spent over the next 20 years of development.
Along with the new tram stop, included in this budget are plans to construct a new primary school, parkland, multiple GP surgeries and walking routes for future residents.
With the UK underperforming in housing construction, many are hoping the new development can become an answer to the housing shortage in Manchester.
