Planning and financing Manchester Metrolink

Abstract

The process of planning Metrolink, the light railway in Greater Manchester can be traced back to the early 1970s when more ambitious proposals for a full-scale rail tunnel under central Manchester were rejected by the Government. Several attempts were made to improve the local rail network by remedying one of its main drawbacks: poor penetration of the central area In the early 1980s the planning process which resulted directly in Metrolink commenced. This examined a range of options for the rail network and rail links including light rail. Gradually many of the constraints on light rail operation on-street in the centre of the city were removed or reduced in scale and the light rail option with street running connecting two converted BR lines, which retained their exclusive right of way, was developed and adopted. At this point the work on justification and funding started. This initially involved estimating potential patronage from a county-wide transportation model and using the results as the basis of a social cost-benefit analysis of the scheme. This was necessary to support an application for a central government grant. The application was submitted at the time of local government reorganization, deregulation and the Government's increasing interest in privatization. In consequence it was necessary, at the request of the Government, to examine ways of bringing private sector funding into the project. After intensive investigation the Design, Build, Operate and Maintain scheme was devised and agreed. This formed the basis of the contract for which five consortia initially competed. The successful consortium (GEC-Alsthom, Mowlem, AMEC) were selected to design and build the system and to operate and maintain it for 15 years. Private funding for the operating rights for 15 years. This came in the form of a payment they made process required further extensive evaluation work and at the final stages a change in the criteria for government grant required yet another appraisal to be carried out before the public sector funding was finally agreed.