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Manchester Victoria station
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Manchester Victoria | |||
 |
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|---|---|---|---|
| Location | |||
| Place | Manchester City Centre | ||
| Local authority | Manchester | ||
| Operations | |||
| Station code | MCV | ||
| Managed by | Northern Rail | ||
| Platforms in use | 6 | ||
| Live departures and station information from National Rail | |||
| Annual Passenger Usage | |||
| 2004/05 * | 0.467 million | ||
| 2005/06 * | 0.487 million | ||
| Passenger Transport Executive | |||
| PTE | Greater Manchester | ||
| Zone | City (D) | ||
| History | |||
| 1844 1902 1996 |
Opened Extended Repaired |
||
| National Rail - UK railway stations | |||
| * Annual passenger usage based on sales of tickets in stated financial year(s) which end or originate at Manchester Victoria from Office of Rail Regulation statistics. | |||
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Manchester Victoria station is the second of Manchester's mainline railway stations. It is also a Metrolink station, one of eight that are within the City Zone. It is located to the north of the city centre on Hunts Bank, virtually adjacent to Manchester Cathedral.
The station serves destinations north and east of Manchester and some trains to Liverpool (on the original Manchester to Liverpool line), it is the main terminus for the adjacent Manchester Evening News Arena, which was effectively joined onto the original station between 1992 and 1996 by means of a "raft" above the through rail platforms - the principal access to the MEN Arena is via stairs on Hunts Bank although there is another entrance from the main station concourse. The line from Bury was converted to light rail operation in the early 1990s when the Metrolink tram system was created, and the trams switch to on-street running once they emerge from the side wall of Victoria Station. Current plans for Phase 3 of Metrolink involve the conversion of the rail routes from Victoria to Rochdale via Oldham to light rail. The trains which stop at the station are all provided by Northern Rail except during engineering works when some trains are diverted from Manchester Piccadilly.
Contents |
In 1838 Samuel Brooks, vice-chairman of the Manchester and Leeds Railway bought a piece of land at Hunt's Bank close to Manchester Cathedral, and presented it to the company for the purpose of creating a new terminus. Originally it was a small single storey single platform building designed by George Stephenson, completed in 1844 and named Victoria by permission of Her Majesty. By this time there were six railways connecting Manchester to the cities of London, Liverpool, Leeds and Sheffield. Victoria Station came to dominate the Long Millgate area and was one of the biggest passenger stations in Britain.
In 1842, work started to extend the Liverpool and Manchester Railway line from Victoria station to Ordsall Lane and the extension opened on 4 May 1844.
Victoria was enlarged by William Dawes, who is responsible for most of the remaining facade, in 1909. It eventually boasted 17 platforms. Wealthy commuters travelled here from Blackpool and Southport rather faster than is possible today (eg 45 minutes from Southport in 1910, 67 today and 65 from Blackpool in 1910, 77 today) in specially-constructed club cars. These non-stop services were abandoned in the early 1960s.
The present Edwardian building has a 160 yards (146 m) facade, which still carries an iron and glass canopy bearing the names of the original destinations which it served, and a tile mural depicting the routes of the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway which operated from the station until 1923. These canopies served as covered waiting porch for taxi cabs until they were severely damaged in the Provisional IRA 1996 bombing - they have now been completely restored to their former glory. The cast iron train sheds behind the façade run back for some 700 yards (640 m). Initially the station was approached by a wooden footbridge over the River Irk which has subsequently disappeared beneath culverting alongside the Cathedral, where it makes its way un-noticed into the River Irwell.
From 1884, Victoria Station had Manchester Exchange Station as a close neighbour and a single passenger platform linked them; this was the longest passenger platform in Europe at 2,194 feet (669 m). Exchange Station was closed in 1969 and its site opposite the cathedral is now a car park.
Victoria station has been awarded £300 million for regeneration in the next stage of development which will be funded by increased taxes, one of which is the proposed congestion charge.
| METROLINK Station | |
|---|---|
| Location | |
| Place | Manchester City Centre |
| Local authority | Manchester |
| Fare zone information | |
| Metrolink Zone | D (City) |
| Metrolink since | 1992-06-04 |
| Manchester Metrolink | |
The station includes a barber's shop, newsagents, coffee bars and buffet. Network Rail aims to rent out the offices on the first and second floors of the station to businesses.
Manchester Victoria is currently served by one train operating company, Northern Rail. It is occasionally used by First Transpennine Express services during engineering works.
Northern Rail provides services from Victoria to the following places:
- Oldham
- Shaw and Crompton
- Rochdale
- Halifax
- Bradford Interchange
- Leeds
- Ashton-under-Lyne
- Stalybridge
- Huddersfield
- Salford Crescent
- Liverpool Lime Street
- Bolton
- Wigan Wallgate
- Southport
- Warrington
- Blackburn
- Kirkby
- Clitheroe
- Wigan Northwestern
Manchester Victoria is also served by Manchester's Metrolink system, forming part of the Bury Line. Trams run through Victoria to Bury, Altrincham and Piccadilly train station.
- Bairstow, Martin (1987) The Manchester & Leeds Railway : the Calder Valley Line, Halifax : M. Bairstow, ISBN 0-9510302-6-4
- Wells, Jeffery (2004) The Oldham Loop. Part 2, New Hey, Milnrow and Rochdale to Manchester Victoria via Castleton, Middleton Junction and Newton Heath and including the Middleton Branch and Werneth Incline, Scenes from the past, 42 (2), Foxline, ISBN 1-87011-976-2
- Train times and station information for Manchester Victoria station from National Rail
- Tram times and station information for Manchester Victoria station from Manchester Metrolink
- Manchester Victoria station is at coordinates Coordinates:
| Preceding station | Manchester Metrolink | Following station | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
toward Bury
|
Bury-Altrincham line |
toward Altrincham or Piccadilly
|
||
| National Rail | ||||
| Terminus | Northern Rail Caldervale Line |
Moston | ||
| Terminus | Northern Rail Huddersfield Line |
Ashton-under-Lyne | ||
| Terminus | Northern Rail Oldham Loop Line |
Moston or Dean Lane |
||
| Salford Central | Northern Rail Manchester-Preston Line |
Terminus | ||
| Salford Central | Northern Rail Ribble Valley Line |
Terminus | ||
| Salford Central | Northern Rail Manchester-Southport Line |
Terminus | ||
| Salford Central | Northern Rail Manchester-Kirkby Line |
Terminus | ||
| Eccles | Northern Rail Manchester-Liverpool Line |
Terminus | ||
| Preceding station | Disused railways | Following station | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| N/A | L&YR |
Miles Platting | ||
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|---|---|
| Managed by Network Rail: | Birmingham New Street • Edinburgh Waverley • Gatwick Airport • Glasgow Central • Leeds • Liverpool Lime Street • Manchester Piccadilly |
| Managed by train operator: | Belfast Central • Belfast Great Victoria Street • Birmingham Snow Hill • Brighton • Bristol Temple Meads • Cardiff Central • Crewe • Derby • Doncaster • Glasgow Queen Street • Manchester Victoria • Newcastle • Nottingham • Reading • Sheffield • York |
|
Railway stations of London: Central area | Greater London
|
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| Managed by Network Rail: | Cannon Street • Charing Cross • Euston • Fenchurch Street • King's Cross • Liverpool Street • London Bridge • Paddington • St Pancras • Victoria • Waterloo |
| Managed by train operator: | Blackfriars • Clapham Junction • Marylebone • Moorgate • Waterloo East |
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|---|---|
| City zone |
G-Mex · Market Street · Mosley Street · Piccadilly · Piccadilly Gardens · Shudehill · St Peter's Square · Victoria |
| Other zones |
Altrincham · Anchorage · Besses o'th' Barn · Bowker Vale · Broadway · Brooklands · Bury · Cornbrook · Crumpsall · Dane Road · Eccles · Exchange Quay · Heaton Park · Harbour City · Ladywell · Langworthy · Navigation Road · Old Trafford · Pomona · Prestwich · Radcliffe · Sale · Salford Quays · Stretford · Timperley · Trafford Bar · Weaste · Whitefield · Woodlands Road |
| See also | |