Ordsall Chord

[6] A bill relating to its proposed construction was debated in the House of Commons in June 1979, receiving some support but it was opposed on the grounds that a tunnel would provide a better alternative.[10] The proposal was included in a draft Network Rail report in 2005 as a solution to overcrowding in the region, at an expected cost of £44 million.[9] In February 2010, the project was revived by Network Rail as part of the Manchester Hub Study, with the intention of receiving government funding by around 2014.[14] Most through trains on TransPennine Express (TPE) routes to Leeds, Newcastle and Liverpool Lime Street will be re-routed via Victoria rather than Piccadilly but some TPE services to Leeds, Liverpool and Newcastle will continue to run via Piccadilly and will stop at Ashburys and/or Gorton and Guide Bridge.The full scheme includes new through platforms at Piccadilly and track improvements outside Manchester to allow fast expresses to overtake slower stopping trains, reducing journey times to Leeds by 14 minutes on average and to Liverpool by 17.[16][17] Detailed designs were presented by Network Rail in November 2012,[18] followed in May by the intended planning application, for submission at the end of August 2013.[28] Whitby wanted an alternative that would not sever the main-line rail connection to the Museum of Science and Industry, nor destroy heritage structures."[37]In January 2021, the UK government published proposals to deal with congestion on the Castlefield corridor through Manchester Oxford Road and Piccadilly.
Panoramic view of the completed Ordsall Chord with the River Irwell , Aviva studios and the Prince's bridge in 2024
Construction of the Ordsall Chord in October 2016
Ordsall Chord under construction in April 2017
Ordsall Lane railway stationNetwork RailGreater ManchesterHeavy railNational RailTrack gaugeManchester VictoriaSalford CentralBoltonSalford CrescentLiverpoolWarringtonDeansgateManchester Oxford RoadManchester PiccadillyStockportMcr AirportRiver IrwellAviva studiosOrdsallSalfordNewcastleRedcar CentralManchester AirportNorthern Hub2011 United Kingdom budgetPiccadillyVictoriaPicc-Vic tunnelCastlefieldHouse of CommonsBritish RailGeorge OsborneChancellor of the Exchequer2011 budgetGreater Manchester Integrated Transport AuthorityChat MossPrestonTransPennine ExpressLiverpool Lime StreetAshburysGortonGuide BridgeRailfreightTrafford ParkGrade I listed1830 railway bridgeLiverpool & Manchester RailwayManchester Liverpool Road railway stationScience & Industry MuseumStephenson Bridgenetwork arch bridgePlanetTransport and Works Actstatutory instrumentMark WhitbyInstitution of Civil EngineersCastlefield corridorNorthern PowerhouseWindsor LinkManchester Evening NewsRoutledgeGreater Manchester's Museum of TransportParliamentary Debates (Hansard)The IndependentWayback MachineThe Independent on SundayPlanning DirectorateInfrastructure Planning CommissionEnglish HeritagePlanning Inspectorate