Ashton-under-Lyne - Transport

Transport

In 1732, an Act of Parliament was passed which permitted the construction of a turnpike from Manchester, then in Lancashire, to Salters Brook in Cheshire. The road passed through Ashton-under-Lyne as well as Audenshaw, Mottram-in-Longdendale, and Stalybridge. A Turnpike Trust was responsible for collecting tolls from traffic; the proceeds were used for road maintenance. The Trust for Manchester to Salters Brook was one of over 400 established between 1706 and 1750, a period in which turnpikes became popular. It was the first turnpike to be opened in Tameside, and driven by economic growth, more turnpikes were opened in the area in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Acts of Parliaments were passed in 1765, 1793, and 1799 permitting the construction turnpikes from Ashton-under-Lyne to Doctor Lane Head in Saddleworth, Standedge in Saddleworth, and Oldham respectively. Towards the end of the 19th century, many Turnpike Trusts were wound up as they were superseded by local government; the last in Tameside to close was the Ashton-under-Lyne to Salters Brook road in 1884.

The town of Ashton-under-Lyne became the focus of three canals which were constructed in Tameside in the 1790s because it was an important centre of coal mining in the Lancashire coalfield. The 1790s has been characterised as a period of mania for canal building in England. The first of the three to be built was the Ashton Canal, which was constructed between 1792 and 1797. Connecting Manchester to Ashton-under-Lyne, with a branch to Oldham, it cost about £170,000 (£13 million as of 2012). The Peak Forest Canal was constructed from 1794 to 1805, and was originally planned as a branch of the Ashton Canal. It connected the Portland Basin with the Peak District and cost £177,000 (£11 million as of 2012). The Huddersfield Narrow Canal was built between 1794 and 1811, to enable cross-Pennine trade between Manchester and Kingston upon Hull; the cost of construction was £400,000.

The advent of the railways in the 19th century signalled the decline of the canal system. The Sheffield, Ashton-under-Lyne and Manchester Railway Company was founded in 1836 with the purpose of building a line linking Manchester and Sheffield. The line was opened in stages and by 1845 was complete. It included a branch to the nearby town of Stalybridge. The new railways were quicker and more economical than the canals, and the waterways declined. The Huddersfield Canal was bought by the Huddersfield and Manchester Railway in 1844. Along with the Ashton and Peak Forest canals, the Huddersfield canal was later bought by the Sheffield, Ashton-under-Lyne and Manchester Railway Company. The company was amalgamated with the Sheffield and Lincolnshire Junction Railway and the Great Grimsby and Sheffield Junction Railway in 1847 to become the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway Company. The canals remained in use throughout the 19th century on a smaller scale than in their heyday, but by the mid-20th century all commercial traffic had ceased. They were used for leisure craft and are still maintained and in good condition.

In 1881, a tramway with horse-drawn tramcars was opened between Stalybridge and Audenshaw, through Ashton-under-Lyne. The first tramway of its kind in Tameside, it was later extended to Manchester. The Oldham, Ashton and Hyde Electric Tramway Company, founded in 1899, operated 13 km (8 mi) of tram lines with electric tramcars. It was the first line around Manchester to use electricity. A line from Stalybridge to Ashton-under-Lyne was opened in 1903 and operated by the Stalybridge, Hyde, Mossley and Dukinfield Tramways and Electricity Board. The first bus service from Ashton-under-Lyne ran in 1923 and the 1920s saw a period of decline for the tramways as they suffered from the competition from buses. The last electric tram service in the town ran in 1938.

The M60 motorway cuts through the west end of Ashton (Junction 23). Regular rail services on the Huddersfield Line between Manchester (Victoria) and Huddersfield stop at Ashton-under-Lyne railway station in the town centre. An extension of the Manchester Metrolink to Ashton will now go ahead, paid for through the Greater Manchester Transport Fund, after previous funding difficulties.

Ashton-under-Lyne bus station is one of the busiest bus stations in Greater Manchester. It is planned to be developed and extended in the coming years. Many buses from Ashton go to the surrounding areas of Tameside, including Mossley, Stalybridge, Droylsden, Hyde and Dukinfield. There are also numerous services to Manchester city centre, the most frequent of which are provided by Stagecoach Manchester's high frequency 216 and 219 services. Other areas served include include Saddleworth, Oldham town centre, Royton, Shaw and Rochdale.