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Metrolink : Tram Stops : Piccadilly

Line	Location	Opening date	number of platforms
Altrincham/Eccles/Bury	Part of National Rail station	20th July 1992	2 1 arrival, 1 departure

Piccadilly Metrolink stop is located in the undercroft of Manchester Piccadilly main line station—that is, the tram stops are at street level, underneath the main line platforms. When first opened the stop was known as Piccadilly Undercroft, and some signage still refers to this name.

The tram stop has a unique layout, with separate arrival and departure platforms. Beyond the platforms are reversing sidings, which all trams use to gain access to the depature platform from the arrival platform. As they enter and leave the reversing sidings trams cross a footway which is one of the exits from the stop. This layout is designed with an eastward extension in mind—the line would continue past the reversing sidings' buffer stops to Ashton-Under-Lyne, wih the arrival platform becoming the Ashton platform and the departure platform continuing to be used for all trams to the city and Altrincham/Bury/Eccles.

Access to the stop is from side streets or by escalator/lift from Piccadilly Station concourse. Between the tram platforms and the main line station is a mezzanine floor which Metrolink passengers travel through.

All trams from Piccadilly travel through Piccadilly Gardens stop.

Pictures

Departure platform at Piccadilly, looking towards Piccadilly Gardens. The arrival platform is behind the partition on the right

16/06/2004 • 000745

Arrivals platform at Piccadilly, looking towards Piccadilly Gardens. The departure platform is behind the partition on the left

16/06/2004 • 000746

Mezzanine floor between Piccadilly station concourse and the tram platforms. On the left is the way down to the departure platform; on the right is the exit up to the main line station

16/06/2004 • 000747

Mezzanine floor between the station concourse and the tram platforms at Piccadilly, looking towards the exit from the arrivals platform. Above is the vaulted ceiling of the station undercroft

16/06/2004 • 000748

The arrivals platform at Piccadilly, as seen from the footpath which crosses the track at the end of the platform. The track in the foreground leads to the reversing sidings which all trams use to gain access to the departure platform

16/06/2004 • 000749

The station undercroft has been opened out on the southern side, but the Metrolink stop sits in a concrete box within the space under the station. Behind the yellow wall is the departure platform

16/06/2004 • 000750

Exterior of the Piccadilly station building, as seen from London Road. The platforms are immediately inside the undercroft. Trams enter on the left, for the arrival platform, and leave on the right from the departure platform. The front entrance to the mainline station above is off-camera to the left, via an approach road which ramps to the station forecourt

16/06/2004 • 000751