Work to build a second Metrolink line through the heart of Manchester has begun.

The three year, £165M construction programme will allow more trams to cross the city centre, increasing the capacity and reliability of the system.

Utility services are currently being diverted away from the footprint of the new tramway in Corporation Street.

Transport for Greater Manchester committee chairman Councillor Andrew Fender said: “This is a moment in time akin to the first spade hitting the ground when the first ever Metrolink line was being built almost 25 years ago.

“It is a symbol of just how successful it has become in that time." Currently more than 27M journeys are made on the Metrolink each year.

The new route will begin in Lower Mosley Street and run through St Peter’s Square, before turning down Princess Street and then heading along Cross Street and Corporation Street before re-joining the existing Metrolink line just outside Victoria.

New stops will be built in Exchange Square and St Peter’s Square.

Manchester City Council’s executive member for the environment Councillor Kate Chappell added: “This important new link will greatly improve our public transport network and make it far easier both for residents and the huge number of visitors who come into Manchester to get across the city centre.”

Powers to install the second Metrolink route were formally approved by the Government in November following a public inquiry and a major public consultation. The upgrade will be complete in early 2017.

Caption: Councillor Andrew Fender, chairman of the Transport for Greater Manchester Committee, and Councillor Kate Chappell of Manchester City Council inspect the start of work on Metrolink’s second city crossing

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