St Peter's Square Metrolink station

St Peter's Square
Manchester Metrolink
St Peter's Square Metrolink Station
Location
Place	Manchester city centre
Local authority	Manchester
Platforms	2
Fare zone information
Metrolink Zone	D (City)
History
Opened	27 April 1992
City Centre to Bury to Rochdale Victoria Second City Crossing Shudehill High Street Exchange Square Market Street Mosley Street Piccadilly Gardens Piccadilly St Peter's Square to Ashton-under-Lyne D'gate-Castlefield ( Deansgate) Cornbrook to MediaCityUK and Eccles Trafford Bar to East Didsbury and to Altrincham Manchester Airport
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St Peter's Square Metrolink station is a Manchester Metrolink station located on St Peter's Square, Manchester city centre.

Metrolink trams from Altrincham and Eccles serve two platforms in the west of the square which are located directly in front of Manchester Central Library. The square is located southeast of Manchester Town Hall and it is between Deansgate-Castlefield and Piccadilly Gardens.

Metrolink's official documents and signs use either St Peter's Square or St Peters [sic] Square as the station's name.

To the west of the square is Peter Street, on which is the Midland Hotel and to the east is Oxford Street.

History

A map of St Peter's Field and surrounding area on 16 August 1819

'Peterloo' (1819)

The area around St Peter's Square was previously known as St Peter's Field, which went down in history as the location of the 1819 Peterloo Massacre. The name derives from St Peter's Church which was built where the gardens are today in the late 18th century and also gave its name to Peter Street. It was built in the neoclassical style by the architect James Wyatt in 1788-94 and was once famous for its church music. It was demolished in 1907 and the Cenotaph replaced it in 1924. A stone cross (1908) commemorates the church. The square is the site for the city's Remembrance Day commemoration each year.

An artist's impression of light rail in St Peter's Square (1987)

In more peaceful times, the square was redeveloped around the construction of the Central Library and Town Hall Extension (1930–34). Plans had existed since the early 1970s for a rapid transit station in St Peter's Square; proposals for the abandoned Picc-Vic tunnel envisaged the construction of an underground station to serve both St Peter's and the neighbouring Albert Square. The early proposals for an on-street light rail system in Manchester revived the idea of a station in the square, and the idea was retained as the project evolved, becoming a reality when the Metrolink system opened in 1992. The Manchester Peace Garden is on the site of a group of former Victorian buildings which included the Mechanics' Institute, Manchester, Cooper Street, before the move to its present site on Princess Street: there is an allegorical bronze statue in the garden.

Manchester Cenotaph

Main article: Manchester Cenotaph

A panoramic view of St Peter's Square. From the far left to right: Midland Hotel, Manchester Central Library and Manchester Town Hall extension; foreground Cenotaph and cross

This is the work of Sir Edwin Lutyens and has similarities to the Cenotaph in Whitehall, London: part of the garden wall was removed for the tram station to be built. It was inaugurated in 1924.

Metrolink infrastructure project, 2009

The station was demolished and rebuilt with a full length platform and improved passenger facilities in November 2009.

Second City Crossing

As part of the second city crossing prosposals, the stop will be moved slightly north towards Princess Street, and transformed into a four-platform interchange. The cenotaph will be relocated and the entire square redeveloped into a new public space. There is a major international competition to design this development.

References

• Bradshaw, L. D. (1985). Origins of Street Names in the City of Manchester. Radcliffe: Neil Richardson. ISBN 0-907511-87-2. 
• Hartwell, Clare (2001) Manchester (Pevsner Architectural Guides) London: Penguin (reissued New Haven: Yale University Press) ISBN 0-300-09666-6; p. 202–03

External links

• Tram times and station information for St Peter's Square Metrolink station from Manchester Metrolink
• St Peter's Square Underground Station - an artist's impression of the Picc-Vic station

Manchester Lines - City Centre and North, (Past, Present and Future)

Legend To Bury To Rochdale Moston To Oldham Bowker Vale Newton Heath Newton Heath and Moston Crumpsall Central Park To Tameside Abraham Moss;Monsall Clayton Bridge Woodlands Road Park Queens Road To Tameside Miles Platting Edge Lane Clayton Oldham Road Velopark Manchester Victoria Holt Town;Etihad Campus Exchange To Salford New Islington Ardwick Exchange Square/Shudehill Ashburys High Street; Manchester Piccadilly Mayfield;To South Manchester Market Street; Piccadilly Gardens To Belle Vue;Gorton Moseley Street;Oxford Road To Hyde Road St Peter's Square To Tameside Manchester Central/Deansgate-Castlefield Deansgate Liverpool Road To Salford;Cornbrook Cornbrook Pomona To Eccles Trafford Bar To Trafford Firswood To Trafford;To Altrincham To Chorlton

Preceding station		Manchester Metrolink		Following station
Deansgate-Castlefield towards Altrincham		Altrincham - Bury Line		Mosley Street towards Bury
		Altrincham - Piccadilly Line		Mosley Street towards Piccadilly
Deansgate-Castlefield towards Eccles		Eccles - Piccadilly Line
Deansgate-Castlefield towards St Werburgh's Road		St Werburgh's Road - Victoria Line		Mosley Street towards Victoria
		Under Construction
Deansgate-Castlefield towards East Didsbury		South Manchester Line		Mosley Street towards Victoria
Deansgate-Castlefield towards Manchester Airport		Manchester Airport Line		Mosley Street towards
		Proposed
Deansgate-Castlefield towards Altrincham		Altrincham - Bury Line Second City Crossing		Exchange Square towards Bury