Manchester city centre is the central business district of

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

, England, within the confines of Great Ancoats Street, A6042 Trinity Way, and A57(M) Mancunian Way, which collectively form an inner ring road. The City Centre ward had a population of 17,861 at the 2011 census. Manchester city centre evolved from the civilian ''

vicus In Ancient Rome, the Latin term (plural ) designated a village within a rural area () or the neighbourhood of a larger settlement. During the Republican era, the four of the city of Rome were subdivided into . In the 1st century BC, Augustus ...

'' of the Roman fort of

Mamucium Mamucium, also known as Mancunium, is a former Roman fort in the Castlefield area of Manchester in North West England. The ''Castra, castrum'', which was founded c. AD 79 within the Roman province of Roman Britain, was garrisoned by a ...

, on a sandstone bluff near the confluence of the rivers Medlock and Irwell. This became the township of Manchester during the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...

, and was the site of the

Peterloo Massacre The Peterloo Massacre took place at St Peter's Field, Manchester, Lancashire, England, on Monday 16 August 1819. Eighteen people died and 400–700 were injured when the cavalry of the Yeomen charged into a crowd of around 60,000 people who ...

of 1819. Manchester was granted

city status City status is a symbolic and legal designation given by a monarch, national or subnational government. A municipality may receive city status because it already has the qualities of a city, or because it has some special purpose. Historically, ci ...

in 1853, after the

Industrial Revolution The Industrial Revolution, sometimes divided into the First Industrial Revolution and Second Industrial Revolution, was a transitional period of the global economy toward more widespread, efficient and stable manufacturing processes, succee ...

, from which the city centre emerged as the global centre of the cotton trade which encouraged its "splendidly imposing commercial architecture" during the

Victorian era In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the reign of Queen Victoria, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. Slightly different definitions are sometimes used. The era followed the ...

, such as the Royal Exchange, the Corn Exchange, the

Free Trade Hall The Free Trade Hall on Peter Street, Manchester, England, was constructed in 1853–56 on St Peter's Fields, the site of the Peterloo Massacre. It is now a Radisson Hotels, Radisson hotel. The hall was built to commemorate the repeal of the Corn ...

, and the Great Northern Warehouse. After the decline of the cotton trade and the

Manchester Blitz The Manchester Blitz (also known as the Christmas Blitz) was the heavy bombing of the city of Manchester and its surrounding areas in North West England during the Second World War by the German ''Luftwaffe''. It was one of three major raid ...

, the city centre suffered economic decline during the mid-20th century, but the CIS Tower ranked as the tallest building in the UK when completed in 1962. The city centre acts as the transport interchange for

Greater Manchester Greater Manchester is a ceremonial county in North West England. It borders Lancashire to the north, Derbyshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Cheshire to the south, and Merseyside to the west. Its largest settlement is the city of Manchester. ...

and over 7 million people live within an hour's drive of it. The 1996 Manchester bombing provided the impetus for the redevelopment of the city centre and an upturn in retail, leisure, offices and urban living. The economy of the city centre is built primarily on retail and services, accounting for nearly 40% of Grade-A city centre office space outside London.

History

Manchester evolved from the civilian ''

'' associated with the Roman fort of

, which was established c. AD 79 on a sandstone bluff near the confluence of the rivers Medlock and Irwell, in a position defensible from the Brigantes. Once the Romans had abandoned Britain, the focus of settlement shifted to the

confluence In geography, a confluence (also ''conflux'') occurs where two or more watercourses join to form a single channel (geography), channel. A confluence can occur in several configurations: at the point where a tributary joins a larger river (main ...

of the rivers Irwell and Irk. During the Dark Ages which followed – and persisted until the

Norman Conquest The Norman Conquest (or the Conquest) was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Normans, Norman, French people, French, Flemish people, Flemish, and Bretons, Breton troops, all led by the Du ...

– the settlement was in the territory of several different petty kingdoms.Hylton (2003), p. 7. In the

, what is now the city centre was the township of Manchester.

Manchester Castle Manchester Castle was a medieval fortified manor house, probably located on a hill, bluff where the rivers River Irk, Irk and River Irwell, Irwell meet, near to Manchester Cathedral, where Chetham's School of Music now is,Newman (2006), p. ...

– a medieval fortification, probably taking the form of a ringwork – was located on a bluff where the rivers Irk and Irwell meet. The castle was first mentioned in 1184 and recorded in 1215 as belonging to the

baron Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often Hereditary title, hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than ...

s of Manchester, the Grelley family. It has been described as "of no political or military importance". The Grelleys replaced the castle with a fortified

manor house A manor house was historically the main residence of the lord of the manor. The house formed the administrative centre of a manor in the European feudal system; within its great hall were usually held the lord's manorial courts, communal mea ...

, which in turn was replaced by a college of priests (founded in 1421). In 1547 the college was dissolved and the property acquired by the Earl of Derby and early in the reign of King Charles II it was sold to the governors who had been appointed in the will of Humphrey Chetham. By royal charter in 1665 Chetham's Hospital was established and this became Chetham's School of Music.

Governance

Manchester city centre is part of the Manchester Central constituency, represented by Labour Co-op MP Lucy Powell. The

City Centre A city centre, also known as an urban core, is the Commerce, commercial, Culture, cultural and often the historical, Politics, political, and geographic heart of a city. The term "city centre" is primarily used in British English, and closely e ...

ward was divided in 2018 between two new wards,

Deansgate Deansgate is a main road (part of the A56) through Manchester City Centre, England. It runs roughly north–south in a near straight route through the western part of the city centre and is the longest road in the city centre at over one mil ...

and

Piccadilly Piccadilly () is a road in the City of Westminster, London, England, to the south of Mayfair, between Hyde Park Corner in the west and Piccadilly Circus in the east. It is part of the A4 road (England), A4 road that connects central London to ...

Geography

The city centre has variously been defined as those parts of the city within the Manchester Inner Ring Road, or else the entire area within Manchester's Inner Ring Road, thereby encompassing a part of the administratively separate

City of Salford The City of Salford is a metropolitan borough with City status in the United Kingdom, city status in Greater Manchester, England, named after its main settlement, Salford, which covers a larger area including Eccles, Greater Manchester, Eccles, ...

, and an area of Oxford Road to the south. Political and economic ties between the city centre and neighbouring Salford and

Trafford Trafford is a metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England, with an estimated population of in . It covers and includes the area of Old Trafford (area), Old Trafford and the towns of Altrincham, Stretford, Urmston, Partington and Sa ...

have strengthened with the shift from town and district centres to metropolitan-level centres in England. Manchester city centre is the commercial heart of

and with adjoining parts of Salford and Trafford is defined as its Regional Centre for

urban planning Urban planning (also called city planning in some contexts) is the process of developing and designing land use and the built environment, including air, water, and the infrastructure passing into and out of urban areas, such as transportatio ...

and public transport purposes. There is little order due to the manner in which the city rapidly developed during the

nor much agreement on the differing areas in Manchester city centre. However many areas and streets in the city centre have a distinctive character with identifiable clusters of industrial warehouses, civic buildings and modern developments. Many of these distinctive areas are covered in 14 city centre conservation areas which are defined by

Manchester City Council Manchester City Council is the Local government in England, local authority for the City status in the United Kingdom, city of Manchester in Greater Manchester, England. Manchester has had an elected local authority since 1838, which has been re ...

Castlefield

Castlefield Castlefield is an inner-city conservation area in Manchester, North West England. The conservation area which bears its name is bounded by the River Irwell, A34 road, Quay Street, Deansgate and A56 road, Chester Road. It was the site of the Rom ...

is an area in the extreme southwest between Deansgate and the River Irwell with the sites of the Roman fort and Liverpool Road Railway Station. It retains much of its industrial character and is the only Urban Heritage Park in the United Kingdom, and is marked by its mercantile 19th warehouses and adjoining wharfs which were used to transport goods from Manchester during the Manchester's industrial era. Today, Castlefield is quiet and noted for its waterside bars and pubs. Notable structures include Manchester Liverpool Road station which was the first inter-city railway station on the opening of the

Liverpool and Manchester Railway The Liverpool and Manchester Railway (L&MR) was the first inter-city railway in the world. It Opening of the Liverpool and Manchester Railway, opened on 15 September 1830 between the Lancashire towns of Liverpool and Manchester in England. It ...

in 1830. Today the station frontage remains and is Grade I listed, as is the adjoining 1830s warehouse. The structure now forms part of the Museum of Science and Industry (MOSI). For many years Castlefield was on a tentative list for UNESCO World Heritage Status for its industrial past – particularly in regards to the development of the canal as a mode of transportation and the railway.

Northern Quarter

The Northern Quarter is in the north east and is known as a hub for alternate and bohemian culture in Manchester. Previously the area was the retail heart of the city centre but with the opening of the Manchester Arndale in the 1970s patronage gradually dwindled and vacant buildings were commonplace. In the late 1980s the area was renamed as the Northern Quarter in the hope that the area would be reincarnated from the ground up. Following the boom of the late 90s and early 2000s the area has become a popular destination for shops, bars, restaurants and nightclub – many of which have an independent ethos.

Central Retail District

The opening of the

Manchester Arndale Manchester Arndale is a large shopping centre in Manchester, England. It was constructed in phases between 1972 and 1979, at a cost of £100 million. Manchester Arndale is the largest of the chain of Arndale Centre, Arndale Centres built ac ...

in 1975 shifted the retail focus towards the area bounded by Market Street, Corporation Street, Withy Grove and High Street. Despite the Arndale's unpopularity with many critics, it has been described as an outstandingly successful shopping centre by visitor numbers and spending. Today the Arndale attracts 41 million visitors a year and is the largest city centre shopping centre in the United Kingdom. The area has been extensively redeveloped after the IRA bomb of 1996 and contains

Manchester Cathedral Manchester Cathedral, formally the Cathedral and Collegiate Church of St Mary, St Denys and St George, in Manchester, England, is the mother church of the Anglican Diocese of Manchester, seat of the Bishop of Manchester and the c ...

, Shambles Square, Exchange Square and Cathedral Gardens, as well as shopping streets Market Street and King Street. Since the bomb, Selfridges, Marks & Spencer and NEXT have opened dedicated large stores in the area. Not all shops are strictly in the retail area with many in Deansgate and King Street – a short walk from the area.

Spinningfields

Spinningfields is an area in the west adjoining the middle part of Deansgate and the main business district of the city centre. The proposal to create a designated central business district originated in 1997 when Allied London purchased a number of buildings around the

John Rylands Library The John Rylands Research Institute and Library is a Victorian era, late-Victorian Gothic Revival architecture, neo-Gothic building on Deansgate in Manchester, England. It is part of the University of Manchester. The library, which opened to t ...

. Allied London executive Mike Ingall was convinced of the site's regeneration potential and

was keen to redevelop the city centre after the 1996 Manchester bombing. The development, named from a narrow street which ran westwards from Deansgate, is bounded by Bridge Street to the north, Quay Street to the south, Deansgate to the east, and the River Irwell to the west. The area is noted for glazed, modern buildings – many of which are offices. In 2010, Spinningfields accounted for 35% of the city centre prime office space with 44 commercial organisation employing nearly 20,000 people. Notable buildings in the area include 1 The Avenue, 3 Hardman Street and the Civil Justice Centre – short-listed for the Stirling Prize and noted as a landmark building for its distinctive cantilevers. Future buildings include the Cotton Building and construction commenced in summer 2014 and will be completed by 2016. Construction on a new 90 metre office tower, 1 Spinningfields could also commence in 2015 after securing a pre-let in late 2014. Aside from offices, Spinningfields was home to a number of high end retail units such as Armani and Mulberry. However, with the main retail district being on the opposite side of the city centre, these units struggled. In recent years the district has cultivated a far more successful image in the food and drink offering with a number of popular restaurants and bars in the area. Footfall, particularly in the evening after work hours, has increased, and revenue from retail and leisure in Spinningfields has risen from £10 million in 2008 to £50 million in 2014.

Piccadilly

Piccadilly is the transport interchange of the city centre with rail, tram and bus services all within a five-minute walk. The area is typically busy with pedestrians commuting to and from the city centre. The area is dominated by Piccadilly Gardens. It is the largest public square in the centre which was redeveloped in the early 2000s but not to a universally positive reception. For over 150 years Manchester Royal Infirmary was located on the site but closed in 1914. A few years after closure the hospital was demolished and public space was created with a landscaped garden set into the ground – hence the name. The area has a dedicated tram station and

bus station A bus station, bus depot, or bus interchange is a structure where city buses or intercity buses stop to pick up and drop off passengers. A bus station is larger than a bus stop, which is usually simply a place on the roadside, where buses can st ...

which has over 20 stands. Most of the stands are located on the south-west side of the square with the rest on the north side.

Peter's Fields (Civic Quarter)

File:Manchester Central Library, March 2010.jpg, Manchester Central Library File:Manchester Town Hall from Lloyd St.jpg,

Manchester Town Hall Manchester Town Hall is a Victorian era, Victorian, Gothic Revival architecture, Neo-gothic City and town halls, municipal building in Manchester, England. It is the ceremonial headquarters of Manchester City Council and houses a number of local ...

File:Manchester Cenotaph November 2014.jpg, The Cenotaph File:Albert-Square-MainStatue.jpg, Albert Square, Manchester File:Midland Hotel west, Manchester.jpg, Midland Hotel File:Manchester Free Trade Hall (Radisson Edwardian Hotel).jpg, The

Peter's Fields, now known as St Peter's Square sits at the top of Oxford Road and Peter Street and extends east towards Princess Street. It is noted for its purpose as a civic area and includes important buildings and monuments such as Central Library, Midland Hotel, YMCA Building, Manchester Town Hall and Town Hall Extension – all of which are listed. It is described by Manchester City Council as "perhaps the greatest collective accolade to Manchester's original modern heritage". The Square is famous for the

in 1819 when cavalry charged into a crowd of 60,000–80,000 that had gathered to demand the reform of parliamentary representation on what was previously fields – hence the name Peter's Fields. A monument to commemorate the nationally importantly event in the struggle for suffrage is expected to be commissioned for 2019 to mark the 200th anniversary of the massacre. In recent years, the square has been redeveloped with new high-rise office buildings, One St Peter's Square and Two St Peter's Square with further buildings approved for the derelict Odeon site and London Scottish House adjacent to the Midland Hotel. As part of the redevelopment, the Cenotaph was relocated outside Manchester Town Hall in 2014 and St Peter's Square tram stop was redeveloped with an additional platform and new configuration in 2016.

Chinatown

Chinatown is an area to the south of Piccadilly Gardens with many oriental restaurants and other facilities of a far eastern character. It is the second largest Chinatown in the United Kingdom and the third largest in Europe. The first settlers to arrive in the city came in the early 20th century; according to the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

, "Many arrived alone and were engaged in what was seen as the traditional trade of laundries." Manchester's first Chinese restaurant, Ping Hong, opened on

Mosley Street Mosley Street is a street in Manchester, England. It runs between its junction with Piccadilly Gardens and Market Street to St Peter's Square. Beyond St Peter's Square it becomes Lower Mosley Street. It is the location of several Grade II and ...

in 1948, on the eve of a Chinese immigration wave that would commence during the 1950s. Manchester did not have a significant Chinese population, reaching only about 2,000. However, after

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, there were severe labour shortages, and in response, the government passed the British Nationality Act 1948, which allowed easier access into the country. Additionally, Hong Kong's rapid urbanisation meant that many farmers and traditional residents' homes were being destroyed by the

urban sprawl Urban sprawl (also known as suburban sprawl or urban encroachment) is defined as "the spreading of urban developments (such as houses and shopping centers) on undeveloped land near a city". Urban sprawl has been described as the unrestricted ...

, so many decided to migrate. The area's beginnings are rooted in the restaurant business, as many Chinese restaurants surfaced soon after the immigration boom. By the 1970s other Chinese businesses began to emerge, such as medicine shops, Chinese supermarkets, as well as financial and legal services, all serving the employees of the expanding number of Chinese restaurants in the area. The area has retained a far eastern character ever since and in 1987 a paifang archway was installed to as a gift to the Chinese community and to reflect the far eastern heritage of the area.

Canal Street

Canal Street, known as the Gay Village, is a part of the centre east of Portland Street and west of Whitworth Street through which runs the Rochdale Canal; it contains many bars, clubs and other facilities – many of which are focused towards the

LGBT community The LGBTQ community (also known as the LGBT, LGBT+, LGBTQ+, LGBTQIA, LGBTQIA+, or queer community) comprises LGBTQ people, LGBTQ individuals united by LGBTQ culture, a common culture and LGBTQ movements, social movements. These Community, comm ...

. The area has long been associated with the gay community with links going back to the early 20th century when homosexuality was still illegal. During the industrial years the area was a red light district.

Demography

At the 2001 UK census, the political ward of "Central", which covers an area of , had a population of 11,689 with a population density of . While this was lower than the population density for the whole city (), the proportion of land dedicated to domestic buildings was lower in the ward than in the whole city (6.7% compared to 8.0%). There was a female-to-male ratio of 100 to 113, much higher than the 100 to 95 ratio for all England. Of those over 16 years old, 65.7% were single (never married), 13.7% married, and 8.7% divorced; this was significantly different from the national figures of 30.2% single, 43.5% married, and 8.2% divorced. The ward's 6,188 households included 61.1% one-person, 8.6% married couples living together, 9.0% were co-habiting couples, and 12.4% single parents with their children; compared to national figures, there was a high proportion of single person households, and a low proportion of married couples living together. Of those aged 16–74, 30.5% had no academic qualifications, lower than the figure for the City of Manchester (34.0%) but slightly above that of the whole of England (28.9%). The ward had a significantly higher percentage of adults with a diploma or degree than the city or England as a whole. Of the ward's residents aged 16–74, 26.3% had an educational qualification such as first degree, higher degree, qualified teacher status, qualified medical doctor, qualified dentist, qualified nurse, midwife, or health visitor, compared to 21.4% in Manchester and 19.9% nationwide.

Economy

and Market Street are the centre's principal retail streets and King Street (with high-class shops) and St Ann's Square are known for their specialist fashion and other shops. There is also a large indoor shopping mall called the Manchester Arndale Centre. Manchester city centre has several large department stores including Marks and Spencer on Market Street, House of Fraser on Deansgate, Harvey Nichols on New Cathedral Street and Selfridges in Exchange Square. There are many leisure facilities in the city centre including the Printworks, a large facility containing a cinema (including an

IMAX IMAX is a proprietary system of High-definition video, high-resolution cameras, film formats, film projectors, and movie theater, theaters known for having very large screens with a tall aspect ratio (image), aspect ratio (approximately ei ...

screen), numerous bars, clubs and restaurants and also Manchester's first

Hard Rock Cafe Hard Rock Cafe, Inc. is a chain of theme restaurant, theme bar-restaurants, memorabilia shops, casinos, hotels and museums founded in 1971 by Isaac Tigrett and Peter Morton in London. In 1979, the cafe began covering its walls with rock and roll ...

. The Northern Quarter, centred on Oldham Street, is known for its Bohemian atmosphere and independent shops and cafes. The landscaping of the city centre has provided several public spaces including Piccadilly Gardens, which incorporates fountains, green spaces, a concrete pavilion designed by Tadao Ando, and a Metrolink station. Exchange Square is located near

Urbis Urbis is a building in Manchester, England, designed by Ian Simpson (architect), Ian Simpson, which opened in 2002 as part of the redevelopment of Exchange Square (Manchester), Exchange Square. Originally a Museum of the City, a switch was made i ...

, formerly an exhibition centre focusing on city life but closed and re-opened in mid-2011 as the National Football Museum. Both Piccadilly and Exchange Square are used for screening public events. Two of the city centre's oldest buildings, ''The Old Wellington Inn'' and ''Sinclair's Oyster Bar'', were dismantled, moved 300 yards and re-erected in 1999 to create the new Shambles Square adjacent to

. There are a great variety of restaurants in the city centre. There are also a good stock of hotels in the city centre which include the Midland, the Hilton within the Beetham Tower, and Kimpton Clocktower.

Leisure

Manchester city centre has many nightclubs, many of which follow in the footsteps of the Haçienda nightclub which has now closed; the site has been redeveloped as a housing complex. There is a

gay village A gay village, also known as a gayborhood or gaybourhood, is a geographical area with generally recognized boundaries that is inhabited or frequented by many lesbian, gay, bisexuality, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) people. Gay vil ...

around the Canal Street area in the east of the city centre, which plays host to an annual Gay Pride Festival, and a large Chinatown with numerous far eastern style restaurants. The area to the west which is bisected by Deansgate and crossed by Peter Street is also well-provided with bars and some clubs (e.g. The Moon under Water and Ampersand). Rafters was a

nightclub A nightclub or dance club is a club that is open at night, usually for drinking, dancing and other entertainment. Nightclubs often have a Bar (establishment), bar and discotheque (usually simply known as disco) with a dance floor, laser lighti ...

located in St James's Buildings. A number of bands played concerts at Rafters in the 1970s and 1980s. Rafters closed in 1983. In its final years the DJ was Mike Shaft who appeared on Piccadilly Radio with Takin' Care of Business. After that the club was renamed as Jilly's which existed to 1993, after which the club was called MusicBox. The city centre also has many bars, mostly located in the Northern Quarter, regarded by some as the central district's creative hub. The quarter is well-provided with bars of various sizes; these include TV 21, Bar Fringe, the cocktail bar Apotheca and Trof. Live music venues may also be found here, including the Night & Day Cafe, MOHO Live and jazz bar Matt & Phred's. There are two major theatres in the city centre, the Palace Theatre (opened 1891) and the Manchester Opera House (opened 1912). In 2008, plans emerged to redevelop the Palace Theatre as a northern base for the Royal Opera and Royal Ballet however these plans were shelved and both theatres were purchased by the Ambassador Theatre Group for £90m. In recent years the Group have launched the 'Manchester Gets It First' campaign and a number of high-profile musicals have premiered in Manchester such as ''

Ghost In folklore, a ghost is the soul or Spirit (supernatural entity), spirit of a dead Human, person or non-human animal that is believed by some people to be able to appear to the living. In ghostlore, descriptions of ghosts vary widely, from a ...

'' in 2011. The Royal Exchange, a nationally known theatre company which specialising in new productions of the classics and is known for its ' the round' layout. The Cornerhouse, at the top of Oxford Road and opposite the Palace, is a venue for the visual arts and contains several cinemas which show mainly art house films. A new Cornerhouse and Library Theatre building will open at First Street in 2015 providing a larger home for both companies.

Manchester Art Gallery Manchester Art Gallery, formerly Manchester City Art Gallery, is a publicly owned art museum on Mosley Street in Manchester city centre, England. The main gallery premises were built for a learned society in 1823 and today its collection occupi ...

, opened in 1824, welcomes over half a million visitors every year and is one of the largest galleries outside London. The Manchester Museum of Science and Industry in Castlefield explores the industrial heritage of the United Kingdom with emphasis on Manchester. The People's History Museum explores the social history of Manchester and the United Kingdom. Many galleries and museum exist outside the city centre in Manchester and Greater Manchester such as the Whitworth Art Gallery,

Imperial War Museum North Imperial War Museum North (sometimes referred to as IWM North) is a museum in the Trafford, Metropolitan Borough of Trafford in Greater Manchester, England. One of five branches of the Imperial War Museum, it explores the impact of modern confl ...

and The Lowry. File:Manchester Art Gallery March 2010.jpg,

File:PeoplesHistoryMuseum.JPG, People's History Museum File:Entrance of the Manchester Museum of Science and Industry.jpg, Museum of Science and Industry File:Urbis Olympics.jpg, National Football Museum at

Transport

Tram leaves Victoria 2014 during re-construction works

Rail

Manchester City Centre has four railway stations in the Manchester station group: Piccadilly, Victoria, Oxford Road and Deansgate. * Manchester Piccadilly station is the largest station in the City with 14 platforms plus 2 Metrolink tram platforms, located on the southeast side of the city centre not far from Piccadilly Gardens, the Gay Village, and the Northern Quarter. The main access is from Piccadilly, which continues towards Ardwick as London Road. *

Manchester Victoria station Manchester Victoria station in Manchester, England, is a combined mainline railway station and Manchester Metrolink, Metrolink tram stop. Situated to the north of the Manchester city centre, city centre on Hunts Bank, close to Manchester Cathe ...

is the main terminus for services from the north and west of Greater Manchester and includes both rail and Metrolink platforms. Victoria is located in the northwest of the city centre near the northern end of Deansgate, Corporation Street and Exchange Square and is connected to the Manchester Arena. It underwent a £44m renovation, completed in August 2015. * Manchester Oxford Road station serves the southern corridor of the city centre, where both the University of Manchester and Manchester Metropolitan University are located, as well as the Central Manchester Hospitals, Palace Theatre, and Cornerhouse. *

station is located in the southwest, between Deansgate locks and nearby Castlefield at the southern end of Deansgate (which is over a mile long). It is also a short walk away from Beetham Tower, as well as the Great Northern complex, housing an AMC Cinema, bars and leisure attractions. It is connected via a link bridge to Deansgate-Castlefield tram stop.

Metrolink

Metrolink is the light rail tram service that operates in Central Manchester. The services are usually 6 mins in the peak and 12 mins off-peak to most destinations, all of which are within Greater Manchester. As of 2021 there are eight lines operating, connecting the city centre with termini at

Altrincham Altrincham ( , locally ) is a market town in Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, south of the River Mersey. It is southwest of Manchester, southwest of Sale, Greater Manchester, Sale and east of Warrington. At the 2021 United Kingdom ce ...

Ashton-under-Lyne Ashton-under-Lyne is a market town in Tameside, Greater Manchester, England. The population was 48,604 at the 2021 census. Historic counties of England, Historically in Lancashire, it is on the north bank of the River Tame, Greater Manchester, ...

, Bury, East Didsbury, Eccles,

Manchester Airport Manchester Airport is an international airport in Ringway, Manchester, England, south-west of Manchester city centre. In 2024, it was the third busiest airport in the United Kingdom in terms of passengers (the busiest outside of London) ...

, MediaCityUK,

Rochdale Rochdale ( ) is a town in Greater Manchester, England, and the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale. In the United Kingdom 2021 Census, 2021 Census, the town had a population of 111,261, compared to 223,773 for the wid ...

and the

Trafford Centre The Trafford Centre is a large indoor shopping centre and entertainment complex in Trafford Park, Greater Manchester, England. It opened in 1998 and is third largest in the United Kingdom by retail space. Originally developed by the Peel Grou ...

. A new line through the city centre was recently constructed. Metrolink stops in the city centre currently are: * Deansgate-Castlefield – services to Altrincham, Ashton-under-Lyne, Eccles, East Didsbury, MediaCityUK and Rochdale, and a service to Manchester Airport * Exchange Square – located in Exchange Square * Market Street – located in one of the main shopping streets and close the Arndale Centre, serving passengers on the Altrincham, Bury, East Didsbury and Rochdale lines. *

– located beneath the main concourse, with services to Altrincham, Ashton-under-Lyne, Bury, Eccles and MediaCityUK as well as city centre stations/stops. * Piccadilly Gardens – located in the busiest bus/tram interchange in the city centre with services to Altrincham, Ashton-under-Lyne, Bury, Eccles and MediaCityUK as well as other city stations including Victoria and Piccadilly. * Shudehill – an interchange station similar to Piccadilly Gardens located near the Northern Quarter, The Printworks and Shudehill bus station. Services to Altrincham, Bury, East Didsbury and Rochdale operate from this interchange. * St Peter's Square – it serves the Altrincham, Bury, Eccles, East Didsbury, Manchester Airport, MediaCityUK and Rochdale lines. It is located close to the central library, town hall and Oxford Street. * Victoria – services to Altrincham, Bury, East Didsbury and Rochdale currently operate from this station, however once expansion of the network is complete it will see a new service to Manchester Airport. Two stations used to serve the city centre but have been closed: * High Street – closed in 1998, unidirectional platform closed after extension of Market Street stop. *

– closed in 2013, unidirectional.

Second City Crossing (2CC)

To facilitate the Metrolink expansion and increased tram frequency an alternative route through the city centre was required. The 2CC runs from Victoria station to St Peter's Square via Exchange Square, Corporation Street, Cross Street and Princess Street. Utility works on re-routing gas and water supplies began in January 2014 and lasted for over a year. The works impacted heavily on parts of the city centre with streets and pavements closed off and awkward diversions introduced.

Bus/Coach

There are also 2 major bus interchanges located in the city centre; Manchester Piccadilly bus station and Shudehill Interchange which all serve local bus services to areas in the 10 Greater Manchester boroughs, as well as some from the surrounding counties of

Cheshire Cheshire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Merseyside to the north-west, Greater Manchester to the north-east, Derbyshire to the east, Staffordshire to the south-east, and Shrop ...

, Lancashire,

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ) is an area of Northern England which was History of Yorkshire, historically a county. Despite no longer being used for administration, Yorkshire retains a strong regional identity. The county was named after its county town, the ...

and

Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It borders Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire, and South Yorkshire to the north, Nottinghamshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south-east, Staffordshire to the south a ...

. * Piccadilly Gardens bus station provides services mainly to the south and east of Greater Manchester and parts of Cheshire. Most services are operated by

Stagecoach Manchester Stagecoach ManchesterCompanies House extract company no 2818654

. * Shudehill Interchange provides services mainly to the north and west of Greater Manchester and parts of Lancashire. Most services are operated by either Go North West or Diamond Bus. Chorlton Street coach station provides long-distance coach services operated by National Express to cities across Great Britain. Shudehill was opened so the bus system was directional.

References

;Sources * * * * * * * * * *

External links

Visit Manchester website with a link to a city centre map

Manchester City Council's Regeneration Team
{{DEFAULTSORT:Manchester City Centre Areas of Manchester Manchester City Council Wards Central business districts in the United Kingdom