All-night trams for Metro

Greater Manchester is to get the only all-night tram system in Britain when the Metrolink extension to the Airport opens –with cheap fares for its 19,000 staff.

The airport, which is handing over £50m towards the nine-mile line through Chorlton, Northern Moor, Baguley, and Wythenshawe, will pay for a service in the early hours from G-Mex for airport staff, passengers and visitors.

Even London’s tube closes down at 1.30am and Blackpool’s famous trams stop running at around 1am.

When the Manchester Airport line opens in 2016 there will be a brief pause in service after the last tram of the night at 00.30 but it will resume at 3am with between two and five trams an hour.

And the good news for workers is that they will be entitled to a concessionary season ticket.

Bosses are keen to get them using public transport because staff car parking is already heavily restricted and there is little scope for creating more spaces within the airport complex.

Increased security measures have also led to restricted access to the airport for passengers arriving or departing by car and this is likely to continue into the future.

The airport will take royalties if the service makes a profit but will have the option of subsidising the all-night running if it loses money.

Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Executive and the airport will work together to develop ticketing, advertising, car parking strategies.

If the extension is not built, the PTE will return any money the airport has handed over.

As well as serving the airport itself, the line passes through the Wythenshawe regeneration area, serving a number of major employment centres.

The new service will help alleviate deprivation in Wythenshawe by improving access for residents.

Despite the massive success of the airport railway station, the vast majority of journeys there are by car or bus. The tram is expected to tempt thousands of drivers out of their cars.