It’s back to the future for train tunnel scheme

THE dream of building and underground link between Piccadilly and Victoria is almost as old as the railway itself.

The two main stations were built by rival businesses in the Victorian era, which meant they created two rail systems which had few connections between them.

Even today, passengers struggle to cross the city efficiently. A direct underground tunnel would alleviate this and cut congestion.

Over the past century, there have been at least six separate attempts to build a rail network below the city, from tramways under a drained Irwell river, to a monorail stopping at the airport. Of all these plans, the Picc-Vic tunnel of the 1970s came closest to being realised.

A series of fortunate conditions made it possible. The formation of a new body responsible for transport, SELNEC (South East Lancashire and North East Cheshire) in 1958, created a local force which would push for ambitious infrastructure projects.

Meanwhile, national laws around local government and infrastructure funding made it easier for cities to apply for transport grants.

Under SELNEC, the project was born and a Tunnel Steering Committee was created as part of the Passenger Transport Authority to carry out the necessary works.

The plan was bold. Two tunnels, 18ft in diameter were to be bored into Manchester’s red sandstone bedrock for 2.75 miles. Running along them would be high-capacity, electrified trains, picking up passengers every two-and-a-half minutes. As well as the tunnel connection, a further 60 miles of track would be added to create an entirely new rail system across the city. The whole project was expected to cost £92,713,000.

New platforms and lines were to be built below Piccadilly and Victoria, and other underground stations were planned across the city.

A new station was to be built below St Peter’s Square. Further entrances were planned on Lower Mosley Street and Albert Square.

A station at the Royal Exchange was also planned to serve the city’s growing number of shoppers. The station would directly link to the nearby Marks & Spencer store, Market Street and the Arndale Centre. Tunnels still exist below the Arndale that were built to accommodate the never realised station.

Designers also planned ‘a moving pavement’ Travelator, so commuters could quickly nip from Piccadilly to Piccadilly Gardens.

The early stages of engineering and design work began in the 1970s to test viability and measure costs. The Manchester architecture firm, Essex Goodman Suggitt, was commissioned to design the platforms and stations. The project was so far developed that promotional materials were produced showing how easily commuters would be able to cross the city. A Tube-style map was mocked-up with five new stations so residents could imagine travelling into the city centre in minutes. An interactive ‘Futuroute’ machine, which can still be seen at the Transport Museum in Cheetham Hill, was installed in Piccadilly station. Users would plug in their destinations and the machine lit up with the routes they could take. But two things would be needed: parliamentary approval and funding from London. The Picc-Vic tunnel succeeded in getting the first when legislation was passed in 1972, but was derailed by the Minister for Transport Industries, John Peyton, who could not justify the costs of the project to a cost-cutting chancellor. The project stalled further and eventually disappeared as transport law and the way infrastructure spending was approved shifted. Attempts were made in the early 70s to resurrect the project, but by then the oil crisis and Stock Exchange crash of 1973 and 1974 made such a costly venture unlikely. The story of the Picc-Vic tunnel