Man Airport Metrolink Extension Cancelled.

[AUTOGLIDE]

Alastair Darling, the alleged minister for transport, has cancelled the extension of the Manchester Metrolink system. This includes the airport link because it's too expensive. So let me get this right, the man who wants road congestion charging to reduce people using cars then goes and cancels an extension to a system estimated to have reduced car journeys already by 19 million. Does this make any sense to anyone at all? It doesn't to me. I wanted to use it to go to MAN when it was finished.

[Ms Spurtle]

Yep. This is an absolute disgrace.

Phase 3 of the metro, which would have taken it to the Airport has already cost over £200M in preparation. Homes & schools have been demolished and tunnels constructed.

The council, PTE and Airport are fuming.

The govt talk about wanting to improve public transport, then cancel expansion of the UKs most used light rail service.

Would this have been cancelled if it was a LONDON service?
Don't think so

[cowboy]

Guys, stop being so narrow minded and provincial. You've got to see it from the governments perspective - why spend public money in one of the UK regions on something beneficial when it could be wasted in the southeast?

[AOG-YYZ]

And Liverpool has cancelled the "Hamburger" they called the "Fourth Grace" ( I only ever heard of 'Three Graces') and I understand this is the second major developement to be cancelled by that city. Wasn't this Will Alsop designed building and the Kings Dock stadium part of why Liverpool was granted 'European Capital of Culture 2008'? This being the case, shouldn't Liverpool lose the title to one of the other competitors?

[Flightmapping]

autoglide, correct me if I'm wrong, but aren't passenger figures for the Metro well down compared with expectations? What ever happened to the route out to the COM Stadium, I thought that was due in time for the C'wealth games?

At least MAN has a good rail link, going (I believe) in two directions.

If Darling wants more people taking the train to airports, I would have guessed that making the LHR express turn left towards Reading would be a top priority, followed by a spur from Paisley Gilmour Street into GLA.

[sisyphus1965]

The passenger numbers on Metrolink are far higher than expectations. The Commonwealth link did not happen because the government would not give the necessary permission and funding for the work to commence.
I think the cancellation may be more to do with a tightening of purse strings to pay for the recent "adventurism" in the Middle East rather than the any particular London bias.

[EGCC]

Thomas Cook Airlines have revealed their support for the Metrolink expansion campaign with the announcement that all their MAN based aircraft (15 or so) will soon be displaying the 'get back on track' campaign logo on the fuselage aswell as holding a petition onboard. They say Metrolink to the airport is vital for passengers, their employees and the Greater Manchester economy as a whole.

EGCC