Manchester Metrolink Light Rail: Phase 3 Trafford Park Extension
The Trafford Park Line is a 3.5 mile extension to the existing Metrolink light rail network from the outskirts of Manchester City Centre at Cornbrook through to the Trafford Centre next to the M60 orbital motorway. The £350m project involved the construction of 6 new tram stops and substantial reconfiguration of existing highways and junctions in the Trafford Park area.
Our involvement comprised of all asphalt and macadam surfacing on the whole route as well as the installation of highway drainage, kerbing, highway paving, precast concrete structure installation and new traffic signal ducting to existing junctions. This project was our fourth involvement since 2012 on the Metrolink ‘Big Bang’ expansion programme having successfully carried out other civils work for TfGM/MPT on the East Didsbury Line, Airport Line and Second City Crossing.
The works took place alongside, over and in conjunction with public highways, traffic-controlled junctions, pedestrian crossings, cycle ways and walkways along its new 5.5 km light rail corridor and included working on some of the north west's most busy road junctions and roundabouts plus keeping disruption to a minimum for some of the biggest attractions in the north west such as Trafford Centre, Manchester United Football Ground, Imperial War Museum North, Granada Studios and the Trafford Park Industrial zone.
The works carried out included:
- Surfacing including base material and binder and surfacing course (machine lay)
- Trackwork surfacing (hand lay)
- Footpath formation and surfacing
- Planning works in advance of re-surfacing works
- Junction improvement works (ducting/ drainage/ kerbing/ signage/ landscaping)
- Installation of precast attenuation tanks
- Installation of kerbs
- Installation of highway drainage
- Dewatering
- Hard Landscaping Works (Flagging/ Block Paving)
The principal quantities involved in the scheme included:
- 1.2km of ducting for new signal installation
- 120 no traffic signal draw chambers
- 130 new road gulleys
- 1.0km of drainage connections to existing highway sewers.
- 12,000m2 of 3rd Party Surfacing
- 103,000m2 of Base Material
- 66,000m2 Binder Material
- 75,000m2 Surface Course
- 755m of Trackwork Surfacing
- 45,000m2 of Footpath Surfacing
- Sawcut & Seal including Permatrack PSB primer to track joints
- Planning Works
We are proud that we played a significant part in the successful delivery of the project which was opened three months ahead of schedule. The project was also officially recognised by being awarded three individual awards in the 2020 British Construction Industry Awards (BCIA) ceremony including Project of the Year, Health, Safety & Wellbeing Initiative of the Year and Transport Project of the Year.