04.04.16
Manchester Victoria and Salford Central stations reopen following Ordsall Chord work
Manchester Victoria and Salford Central stations reopened today following 10-day closures for the Ordsall Chord project.
During the blockade Network Rail engineers moved track, widened the Middlewood viaduct, installed a new bridge and strengthened railway arches.
The Chord will connect Manchester’s Victoria and Piccadilly stations and is expected to reduce congestion at Manchester Piccadilly by a quarter once it is completed in December 2017.
Martin Frobisher, route managing director for Network Rail, said: “Firstly I would like to thank passengers and the train operating companies for their patience and understanding during the 10-day closure. I realise it caused some disruption but it was absolutely necessary to close both stations so we could take a step closer to providing the train service that passengers in Manchester and across the north of England deserve.
“Once complete, the Ordsall Chord will provide many benefits and play a major role in helping us deliver the Northern Programme. Not only will it link two major stations in Manchester and speed-up journey times but it will provide a boost to the local economy, helping create thousands of new jobs.”
The Chord is part of Network Rail’s £1bn Northern Programme and will involve building a a new railway bridge in the area. The unique design, known as a Network Arch Bridge, will be a first in Britain. Along the route George Stephenson’s Bridge, which is grade 1 listed, will be refurbished and made visible as part of the development.
A legal challenge by Mark Whitby, former president of the Institution of Civil Engineers, against the Ordsall Chord order on the grounds that his alternate scheme could deliver the same performance but without the same impact on the heritage of the structures in the area, was dismissed last year and dismissed again on appeal.
To view the video of the Ordsall Chord development in process, click here.
(Image c. Network Rail)