Withington - Transport

Transport

Withington has bus links into the Manchester city centre because of its position on the Wilmslow Road bus corridor which is served by buses very frequently and has been said by some analysts to be the busiest in Europe. The majority of services are operated by Stagecoach Manchester.

Withington village does not currently have a named or direct railway station—the nearest rail link is Mauldeth Road railway station, located to the east in Ladybarn. The old Withington and West Didsbury railway station on Palatine Road, run by the Midland Railway, closed in 1967 during the Beeching Axe.

As part of the expansion project for the Metrolink system, it is planned to re-open the old Midland railway line for light rail operation. Under the proposals, Metrolink trams will run from Manchester City Centre through Chorlton to East Didsbury, with new tram stops at Withington, Burton Road and the re-opened West Didsbury station serving the Withington area.

The proposed Metrolink extension has had several false starts. Building a light rail link through Withington was first proposed in the early 1980s but funding was not secured until the 21st century. The project was then put on hold due to escalating costs; new funding was sought through the Manchester Congestion Charge, but this was rejected in a public referendum in 2008. The project was revived in May 2009 with a new funding package from local and national government, and clearance work began on the line in 2011.