Manchester Airport: plans to encourage more people to use public transport- including 'flagship station'

It comes after concerns were raised this week about the huge amount of car trips being made to drop off and collect passengers flying through the airport. Manchester Airport benefits from an on-site rail, bus and tram station, but the majority of people end up driving to get there.

Hazel Grove MP Lisa Smart said there are 30 million people who use Manchester airport each year, with 84 percent of journeys to and from the area being made by car.

“The carbon footprint of Manchester Airport comes only partly from air travel, as a lot of it comes from road travel,” she added.

Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) said access to the airport is a “key part” of its plans to make it easier to travel around the region on the Bee Network. The network has plans to bring eight railway lines covering 64 stations under local control, a project which will be rolled out in three separate phases.

Phase two of the work, expected by December 2027, will see the rollout of tap in tap out ticketing on services connecting Manchester Piccadilly to Manchester Airport, Alderley Edge and Buxton via Stockport. It includes creating a ‘flagship station’ at Manchester Airport and an international travel hub as the gateway to Greater Manchester.

Looking further ahead, TfGM is also looking at creating new tram and tram-train lines, which includes completing the western leg of the Metrolink airport tram line, and several potential tram-train services that could make use of the new infrastructure. A report shared last summer about the airport tram line western leg revealed that bosses want the network to serve Wythenshawe Hospital and Medipark, existing and proposed housing at Newall Green and Davenport Green, and the expanded Terminal 2 and Airport City.

This includes offering additional services on the airport line and a ‘substantial reduction’ in journey times compared to the existing eastern leg via Wythenshawe Town Centre. A future new railway line connecting Liverpool and Manchester which would serve the airport is also being explored.

TfGM said a recent report showed the scheme could be worth an additional £7bn per year and 40,000 additional jobs by 2050, as well supporting the construction of 300,000 new homes.

Danny Vaughan, chief network officer at TfGM, said: “As a major employer and international gateway, Manchester Airport is central to the success of Greater Manchester, the north and beyond. People come from far and wide and it’s important we give them the opportunity to choose the Bee Network and sustainable travel options.”

He added: “The airport is now served by locally controlled buses for the first time in 40 years as well as the UK’s largest light rail network. It is central to the next phase of the Bee Network and our plans to work with industry partners to deliver major improvements to rail stations and services, including those serving the airport, and longer term as we look at future Metrolink options and, ultimately, a transformational new line between Manchester and Liverpool.”

A series of network reviews are also currently taking place by TfGM, which includes looking at how people access the airport using public transport. Mike Kane MP, the minister for aviation, maritime and security, also said he will meet with Manchester airport operators to discuss public transport options.