A possible opening date for a new tram stop between Collyhurst and Manchester city centre has been revealed.
A new Metrolink station near Sandhills Park, just off Rochdale Road, has been on the cards for years as part of the huge Victoria North regeneration plan, a £4bn project to build nearly 20,000 homes from Angel Meadow in the city centre northwards to Collyhurst.
New amenities, like a school, medical centre, and shops are in the works - as is the Sandhills stop, between Queens Road and Victoria on the Metrolink network.
First mooted in 2019, transport bosses received a big boost in February this year when the government agreed to fund a £1.5m outline business case for the station, a key step in the construction process.
Now, Manchester council bosses say 'it is estimated that the new Metrolink station at Sandhills could be operational by 2030 or 2031', with the caveat it is 'subject to capital funding'.
Sandhills has been identified as the location for Manchester's newest tram stop because its opening will allow thousands of new homes to be built, all of which will have quick access to the city centre.
A report for Manchester council's regeneration scrutiny committee said: "The development potential of the Vauxhall Gardens neighbourhood, located between Red Bank and Collyhurst, is underpinned by a proposed new Metrolink station at Sandhills.
"This is a key objective... considered to be a fundamental piece of enabling infrastructure to unlock new housing built to a high urban density considering the highly sustainable and accessible location."
Housing could open nearby at the start of the next decade, Gavin White, executive councillor for development also said on Tuesday (November 4).
"The idea is the tram stop develops as we develop further housing," he told a town hall meeting. "What we deliver both at the same time remains to be seen but that's the plan. Already hundreds of people live nearby, but there's a chance for thousands of homes and bring that forward together."
Sandhills was one of three new stops to get the go-ahead earlier this year, along with Elton Reservoir in Bury and Cop Road in Oldham. The same programme also approved tram line extensions to Stockport town centre.
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