Broadband delay

New fears that super-speed system faces Werneth halt
OLDHAM’S town centre redevelopment plans could be jeopardised by delays to high-speed broadband, a councillor has claimed.

The ‘’4G’’ connection is coming alongside Metrolink: cables are being laid in ducts alongside the tracks.

But Councillor Dave Hibbert says a two-year gap between the two phases of the long-awaited tram extension will leave much of the town centre without the promised internet boost.

The line following the old Oldham loop railway will open next spring with a temporary stop at Mumps.

But the final alignment through the town centre, via Union Street, is not due until the Spring of 2014.

Councillor Hibbert told a meeting of the Transport for Greater Manchester committee: “We are hearing that the trunking on the first phase will only go as far as Werneth and there will be no trunking for the broadband cables between Werneth and Mumps for two years.

“The town-centre area Metrolink is going through is very important for redevelopment and 4G broadband is a key criterion.”

TfGM Metrolink director Phil Purdy promised to investigate.

Meanwhile, consultation which started yesterday for Transport and Works Act (TWA) consent for the line to cross Oldham Mumps roundabout at ground level may be unnecessary and could even delay the opening of the line to Derker, Shaw, and Rochdale, warned Councillor Richard Knowles.

The iconic Mumps Bridge, which carried trains on the Oldham loop, was demolished last August after it was decided trams should cross the roundabout at ground level.

But TfGM has been told it needs special planning permission for transport projects. But Councillor Knowles, Professor of Transport Geography at Salford University, challenged the idea.

“My understanding is that the legal powers would only be needed if it was to move horizontally.

“Taking a viaduct down and putting the track on the ground is not altering the alignment and I am not sure we need them.”

He warned that the application could delay the opening of the line to Rochdale, where TfGM has agreed to run only a single line across the weak Wellington Bridge over the River Roche rather than strengthen or replace it.

The committee has also agreed to axe plans for a stop in the retail area of Drake Street, Rochdale, and build one instead on the Kingsway business park.