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{{infobox shopping mall|
the trafford centre was made to brainwash your minds!
| shopping_mall_name = Trafford Centre
| image = Trafford-arial.jpg
| image_width = 300px
| caption =
| location = [[Trafford]], [[Greater Manchester]], England
| opening_date = 10 September 1998<ref name="info"/>
| developer = [[The Peel Group]]
| manager = Mike Butterworth, Managing Director
| owner= [[Capital Shopping Centres]]
| architect= Leach Rhodes Walker<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Construction Programme – The Trafford Centre |url=http://www.traffordcentre.co.uk/information/pack/construction |publisher=www.traffordcentre.co.uk |accessdate=2 November 2010}}</ref>
| number_of_stores = 280
| number_of_anchors = {{Collapsible list | titlestyle = font-weight:normal; background:transparent; text-align:left;
| title = 6
| [[British Home Stores|Bhs]]
| [[Boots UK|Boots]]
| [[Debenhams]]
| [[John Lewis (department store)|John Lewis]]<ref name="johnlewistc">{{Cite web |title=The story of John Lewis Trafford Centre |url=http://www.johnlewis.com/Shops/DSTemplate.aspx?Id=101 |publisher=johnlewis.com |accessdate=3 November 2010}}</ref>
| [[Selfridges]]
| [[Marks & Spencer]]
| }}
| floor_area = Retail: 177,000 m<sup>2</sup><ref name="overallsize">{{Cite news |title=Shopping Centres – Trafford Centre |url=http://www.capital-shopping-centres.co.uk/shopping_centres/csc/the_trafford_centre/ |work=Capital Shopping Centres |accessdate=15 September 2011}}</ref><ref name="portfolio"/><br>
Leisure: 16,258m<sup>2</sup><ref name="overallsize"/><br>
Dining: 13,935m<sup>2</sup><ref name="overallsize"/><br>
'''Total''': 207,000m<sup>2</sup><ref name="overallsize"/><br>
| parking = {{FORMATNUM:10630}}<ref name="fact"/>
| floors = 3
| website = http://www.traffordcentre.co.uk
}}
The '''Trafford Centre''' is a large indoor shopping centre and leisure complex situated in the [[Metropolitan Borough of Trafford]] in [[Greater Manchester]], close to the [[Trafford Park]] industrial estate and approximately 5 miles from [[Manchester city centre]]. It is the highest valued shopping centre in the United Kingdom at £1.65 billion.<ref name="portfolio">{{Cite news |title=Portfolio |url=http://www.capital-shopping-centres.co.uk/about/portfolio/ |work=Capital Shopping Centres |accessdate=17 June 2011}}</ref> The Trafford Centre is the largest shopping centre in the United Kingdom by overall size (including leisure and dining space) and the [[List of the largest shopping centres in the United Kingdom by size|second largest shopping centre in the UK]] by retail size.<ref name="portfolio"/>

The site occupied by the Trafford Centre was owned by the [[Manchester Ship Canal Company]] until 1986 when the company was acquired by [[John Whittaker (businessman)|John Whittaker]] of Peel Holdings who had plans for an out of town shopping centre. The planning process for the Trafford Centre was one of the longest and most expansive in the history of the United Kingdom with concerns surrounding the effect the shopping centre would have on retailers in smaller towns and villages in the Greater Manchester conurbation and also traffic problems being so close to the [[M60 motorway]].<ref name="commonwealth">{{Cite web |title=The Shops – Trafford Centre |url=http://www.manchester2002-uk.com/shops/trafford-centre.html |publisher=www.manchester2002-uk.com |accessdate=3 November 2010}}</ref> Ultimately the matter was decided by the [[House of Lords]] in 1996, which voted in favour of the development.<ref>House of Lords (1995) "Opinions of the Lords of Appeal for Judgment in the cause Bolton Metropolitan District Council and others (respondents) versus Secretary of State for the Environment and others (appellants)" 24 May, written by Lord Lloyd of Berwick.</ref><ref>Trafford Centre (1997) "From de Trafford to the House of Lords" Trafford Centre Insight, Brochure.</ref>

Twelve years after the Trafford Centre was first conceptualised by developers the [[The Peel Group|Peel Group]], the shopping centre opened in September 1998. Construction took 27 months and cost approximately £600&nbsp;million (approximately £750M as of 2010), excluding new expansion such as Barton Square and redevelopment of some areas for anchor tenants.<ref name="commonwealth"/> Popularly known for its vivid and quirky resemblance to a [[rococo]]/late [[baroque]] architectural style, the centre employs 8,000&nbsp;people.<ref name="fact">{{Cite web |title=Portfolio |url=http://www.capital-shopping-centres.co.uk/about/portfolio/ |publisher=Capital Shopping Centres |accessdate=17 June 2011}}</ref>

Ten&nbsp;percent of the UK population live within a 45-minute drive of the shopping centre,<ref name="fact"/> which attracts more than 35&nbsp;million visits annually.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Tills ring at Trafford Centre |quote=Visitor numbers increased by 6.4 per cent year-on-year to more than 35m. |last=Bounds |first=Andrew |url=http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/00102cbc-12ae-11e0-b4c8-00144feabdc0.html#axzz1S2Lrpmx7 |newspaper=Financial Times |date=29 December 2010}}</ref> It has Europe's largest food court in ''The Orient'' and the UK's busiest cinema, attracting over 28,500&nbsp;visitors each week.<ref name="fact"/> There are over 10,000 car parking spaces with plans to build a new [[Metrolink]] [[Trafford Centre Metrolink station|spur]] and a [[ferry]] system from the [[Manchester Ship Canal]] to the Centre.

==History==
[[File:Aerial photograph of Salford and Trafford Park.jpg|thumb|right|The Trafford Centre, located at the bottom of the image, was built on land which was previously owned by the Manchester Ship Canal Company]]
Manchester City Council{{#tag:ref|Manchester Corporation was subsumed into the newly created Greater Manchester County Council in 1974 until 1986, when the [[unitary authority]] of Manchester City Council was established.<ref>{{citation |title=Greater Manchester County Record Office (with Manchester Archives) Guide to Local Government Records |publisher=Manchester Library & Information Service |url=http://www.manchester.gov.uk/download/13442/local_government_records_guide |format=DOC |accessdate=7&nbsp;August 2011}}</ref>|group=nb}} retained its seats on the board of the Ship Canal Company until the mid-1980s. By then the arrangement had become "meaningless", as most of the company's shares were controlled by the property developer [[John Whittaker (businessman)|John Whittaker]]. In 1986 the council agreed to give up all but one of its seats in return for a payment of £10&nbsp;million. The arrangement extricated Manchester Council from a possible conflict of interest, as Whittaker was proposing to develop a large out of town shopping centre on land owned by the Ship Canal Company at [[Dumplington]], which would later become the Trafford Centre.

Manchester City Council opposed the scheme, believing that it would impact negatively on the [[Manchester city centre]] economy, but accepted that it was "obviously in the interests of the shareholders".<ref name=King98-100>{{Harvnb|King|2006|pp=98–100}}</ref> £7 million was paid in cash and £3&nbsp;million invested in a joint venture company set up by Whittaker and the council, Ship Canal Developments. The object of the new company was to provide resources and development expertise for the regeneration of east Manchester.<ref>{{Cite book |title=Detonation: Rebirth of a City |page=98-100 |last=King |first=Ray |last=King |year=2006 |publisher=Clear Publications |isbn=0-9552621-0-0}}</ref>
The fund appeased the City Council to an extent, and the land in east Manchester was eventually redeveloped into [[Sportcity]], with the [[City of Manchester Stadium]] at the heart of the regeneration.

Peel Holdings submitted a planning application, which totalled approximately 300 acres, to [[Trafford Metropolitan Borough Council]] in 1986. The application was subsequently "called in" by the Secretary of State for the Environment and a number of legal disputes ensued. Planning permission for the development had to pass two public enquiries before planning permission was granted.
Issues involved possible further congestion on the M60 orbital motorway.<ref name="malling">{{Cite news |title=Taking a malling |url=http://www.economist.com/node/164647 |work=economist.com |date=10 September 1998 |accessdate=2011-09-13}}</ref> The other main issue was the possible consequences on visitors to shopping areas in the vicinity of the Trafford Centre. Some believed the Trafford Centre would have adverse consequencse on shopping figures in neighbouring areas of Greater Manchester. Areas such as [[Stockport]], [[Wigan]], [[Bolton]] and as far away as [[Blackpool]] and [[Warrington]].<ref name="malling"/> Planning permission was granted in 1993.<ref name="planning">{{Cite news |title=Slow net asset growth hits Peel |last=Stevenson |first=Tom |url=http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/slow-net-asset-growth-hits-peel-1414017.html |newspaper=The Independent |date=15 July 1994}}</ref> before being thrown out by the Court of Appeal.<ref name="planning"/> However planning permission was reinstated and in 1995 the [[House of Lords]] gave approval for the Trafford Centre to be built.<ref>http://www.poptel.org.uk/trafford.park/7.HTM</ref>

Construction began in 1996 and the Trafford Centre finally opened on the 10 September 1998 becoming the UK's first 'mega mall' which combined retail, dining and leisure facilities.<ref name="megamall">{{Cite news |title=Westfield Stratford – Britain's last mega-mall |last=Hall |first=James |url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/retailandconsumer/8010903/Westfield-Stratford-Britains-last-mega-mall.html |newspaper=The Telegraph |date=18 September 2010 |accessdate=2011-09-16}}</ref> Upon opening, the Trafford Centre was the largest shopping centre in the UK but soon lost its title to Bluewater in Kent, however it is the second largest shopping centre in 2011 after numerous expansions.<ref name="megamall"/> [[The Peel Group]] agreed the sale of the centre to [[Capital Shopping Centres]] (CSC) in January 2011 for £1.6&nbsp;billion<ref>{{Cite news |title=Trafford Centre in Greater Manchester sold by Peel |url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-manchester-11841047 |work=BBC |date=25 November 2010}}</ref> and a position for [[John Whittaker (businessman)|John Whittaker]], chairman of Peel Group, as deputy chairman of CSC.<ref>{{Cite news |title=About us – Non-Executive Directors |url=http://www.capital-shopping-centres.co.uk/about/directors_and_management/non_executives/ |work=Capital Shopping Centres |accessdate=12 July 2011}}</ref> This followed a failed £2.9&nbsp;billion bid by [[Simon Property Group]] for [[Capital Shopping Centres]].<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2011/jan/11/trafford-centre-battle-ends-in-peel-group-victory | location=London | work=The Guardian | first=Julia | last=Kollewe | title=Sale of Trafford Centre ends battle for control of CSC | date=11 January 2011}}</ref> Nevertheless, the lower £1.6 billion was the UK's largest ever property transaction.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Capital Shopping Centres seals £1.6bn Trafford Centre deal despite Simon Property Group's concerns |last=Ruddick |first=Graham |quote=Capital Shopping Centres has sealed the UK's largest ever property transaction after 80pc of shareholders backed its £1.6bn acquisition of the Trafford Centre. |url=http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/constructionandproperty/8284524/Capital-Shopping-Centres-seals-1.6bn-Trafford-Centre-deal-despite-Simon-Property-Groups-concerns.html |newspaper=The Telegraph |date=27 January 2011 |accessdate=2011-09-15}}</ref>

== Architecture and design ==
[[File:Trafford Centre - geograph.org.uk - 104466.jpg|thumb|upright|Looking up into the main domed [[cupola]] of the Trafford Centre, decorated at a cost of £5M]]
The Trafford Centre was built by [[Bovis Lend Lease]] and opened in 1998,<ref>{{citation |url=http://www.contractjournal.com/Articles/1997/09/17/20855/bovis-reputation-is-cornering-the-shopping-market.html |title=Bovis' reputation is cornering the shopping market] |journal=Contract Journal |date=17&nbsp;September 1997}}</ref> it has {{convert|1900000|sqft|m2}} of retail space.<ref name="portfolio"/> It is made up of four main areas located across two floors: Peel Avenue, Regent Crescent, The Dome, and The Orient. It was designed so that visitors enter on both of the two main shopping floors in equal numbers.<ref>http://www.traffordcentre.co.uk/downloads/traffinfo.pdf</ref> This helps avoid the problem suffered by other centres, such as the [[MetroCentre (shopping centre)|MetroCentre]], where visitors do not go to upper floors, consequently many large retailers avoid upper floor units. A third floor exists for the Odeon Cinema, and other leisure facilities such as [[Laser Quest]]. In addition to the three floors, the Trafford Centre is "future-proof" in the words of developer John Whittaker with existing prepared areas for an additional fourth floor which was built during construction.<ref name="interview">{{Cite news |title=Whittaker has more to offer than the rococo |url=http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/22082e9e-360a-11e0-9b3b-00144feabdc0.html#axzz1Y3bh8CfT |newspaper=Financial Times |date=11 February 2011 |accessdate=2011-09-15}}</ref>

{{Quote|text=When we first started the architects said, "you shouldn’t be doing all this and giving it all the razzmatazz and showbiz, leave that to the retailers. Make it plain, make it clinical, make it white and hospitalised and let them do the work". So then we put in the paintings, we put in the real gold leaf, we put artefacts everywhere, paintings. It is the people’s palace. It is something to attract shoppers&nbsp;... to give them the Dallas effect.|sign=[[John Whittaker (businessman)|John Whittaker]], owner of The Peel Group which developed the Trafford Centre on the mall's design.<ref name="interview"/>}}

The Trafford Centre's interior and exterior architecture is [[Rococo]]/late [[Baroque]] in design, with elements of [[Art Deco]] and Egyptian Revival, and decorated primarily in shades of white, pink and gold with ivory, jade and caramel coloured marble throughout. Three domed atria are located along the length of the mall, with Peel claiming the middle dome is bigger than the dome at [[St Paul's Cathedral]]<ref name="construct">{{Cite news |title=The mall that ate Manchester |last=Swanton |first=Oliver |url=http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/the-mall-that-ate-manchester-1195385.html |newspaper=The Independent |date=2 September 1998}}</ref>, and costed £5 million to construct alone.<ref name="interview"/>

The Trafford Centre also has £5.8 million (1996 value) of [[marble]] and [[granite]] flooring<ref>{{Cite news |title=Trafford Centre fact file |url=http://www.lancashiretelegraph.co.uk/archive/1997/12/19/Lancashire+Archive/6163976.Trafford_Centre_fact_file/ |newspaper=Lancashire Telegraph |date=19 December 1997 |accessdate=10 July 2011}}</ref> and [[gold leaf]] adorns the building's columns.<ref name="construct"/> The marble flooring are polished every night along with rails giving the shopping centre an opulent style.<ref name="bbccomment">{{Cite web |title=Trafford Centre – shopping hell or heaven? |url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/manchester/have_your_say/2002/12/31/trafford_centre.shtml |publisher=bbc.co.uk |date=31 December 2001 |accessdate=3 November 2010}}</ref> Others however have criticised the deception of the fake palm trees and neo-classical decorative pillars which are not marble.<ref name="bbccomment"/> [[The Peel Group]] say that the striking and extrovert architecture is aimed at providing visual delight, to make the visitor's shopping experience more vivid and interesting.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Design Statement&nbsp;– The Interior |url=http://www.traffordcentre.co.uk/information/pack/design |publisher=www.traffordcentre.co.uk |accessdate=3 November 2010}}</ref>

Portraits running around the top of the walls of the mall depict members of the Whittaker family, founders of owner Peel Holdings. A [[Mercedes-Benz|Mercedes]] car belonging to the mother of Peel Holdings' chairman, John Whittaker, is on display on the first floor mall outside {{nowrap|[[F. Hinds]]}}.

==Focal points==
{{wide image|Trafford Centre.jpg|1000px|<center>The Orient is Europe's largest food court, with seating for 1,600 and 60 restaurants, cafés, and bars.<ref name="fact"/></center>}}

===The Orient===
The Trafford Centre's main non-retail is located in a central hall-like spur called The Orient, primarily a {{FORMATNUM:1600}}-seat food court which is mainly themed on a ship but incorporates designs from around the world including China, New Orleans, Egypt, Italy, America and Morocco.<ref name="overview">{{Cite web |title=The development and its size |url=http://www.traffordcentre.co.uk/information/pack/Default.aspx?ID=994 |publisher=www.traffordcentre.co.uk |accessdate=3 November 2010}}</ref>

On both floors, The Orient has dozens of restaurants and bars including The Exchange Bar & Grill, TGI Fridays, [[Starbucks]], Est Est Est, Ma Potter's, [[Nando's]] and Cathay Dim Sum. There are also several popular fast food outlets – [[McDonald's]], [[KFC]], [[Subway (restaurant)|Subway]], [[Harry Ramsdens]] and [[Pizza Hut]] among others. [[Burger King]] recently moved into the Trafford Centre in November 2011.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Whopper deals For Burger King as it expands on shopping centre presence |url=http://www.eatoutmagazine.co.uk/online_article/Whopper-deals-for-Burger-King-as-it-expands-on-shopping-centre-presence/14553 |work=eatoutmagazine.co.uk |date=4 October 2011 |accessdate=2011-10-05}}</ref> The fast food outlet previously had a presence in the Festival Village area of the Trafford Centre until its closure in 2003 to allow conversion to a John Lewis anchor store.

Furthermore the area also has non-dining facilities and includes a 20-screen [[Odeon Cinemas|Odeon]]<ref>{{Cite web |title=Odeon – Trafford Centre |url=http://www.odeon.co.uk/fanatic/cinema_information/s20/ |publisher=www.odeon.co.uk |accessdate=3 November 2010}}</ref> multiplex cinema (which is the busiest in the UK), a [[Laser Quest]] arena, Paradise Island Adventure Golf ([[miniature golf]]), a large [[Namco|Namco Centre]] with [[Dodgems]], [[Bowling]], and [[Arcade games]].

===The Great Hall===
[[File:Inside the Trafford Centre.jpg|thumb|right|300px|<center>The Great Hall<center>]]
The Great Hall houses an elegant sweeping staircase featuring hundreds of metres of marble balustrade from China and the Trafford Centre claims it to be the largest [[chandelier]] in the world.<ref name="greathall">{{Cite news |title=Biggest chandelier in the world? |url=http://menmedia.co.uk/manchestereveningnews/news/s/1001/1001939_biggest_chandelier_in_the_world.html |newspaper=Manchester Evening News |date=15 March 2007 |accessdate=10 July 2011}}</ref>

The chandelier was designed by English lighting consultants, and then sent to China for manufacture; assembly and installation was done by local contractors. The chandelier has three levels of plant walkways inside, is around 11&nbsp;m (36&nbsp;feet) wide and 15&nbsp;m (49&nbsp;feet) high, weighs around five&nbsp;tonnes, and has more lighting control systems than most shopping centres.

A new area adjoining the Orient, known as The Great Hall, opened fully in March 2007, although a [[Costa Coffee]] outlet opened earlier in January 2007. This new glazed structure houses five new restaurants and cafes. Construction took 18 months at a cost of £26 million.<ref name="greathall"/>

The decision to extend the current dining facilities was due to the growth in demand amongst visitors wishing to dine during their stay, or indeed visit The Trafford Centre during the evening specifically for food and drink.
{{clear}}

==Shopping areas and stores==
===Peel Avenue===
[[File:Trafford centre 6.jpg|thumb|200px|right|Shops inside the centre]]
Peel Avenue is home to the high street shops such as an [[Apple Store (retail)|Apple Store]], [[H&M]], and [[Boots the Chemists|Boots]]. It is also home to two department stores, the new [[John Lewis Partnership|John Lewis]] which opened in 2005 at the end of Peel Avenue, and the newly refubished four-storey [[Marks & Spencer]], (see below). The retail unit now occupied by John Lewis at the one end of the Centre was previously a market-themed area for independent stores and was called Festival Village.

The latest development to be completed is the new four-storey Marks and Spencer. This now features an outside entrance to the foodhall, which will mean that customers doing their food shopping at Marks and Spencer can take their bags straight out to the car park, rather than walking through the mall. The Dome is in the middle of the centre and is home to more upmarket stores such as the first [[Selfridges]] outside of [[London]]. Regent Crescent is home to many high-end designer stores, including Karen Millen, Jane Norman, [[Gap (clothing retailer)|Gap]] and [[Mexx]]. It also houses the bookshop [[Waterstones]] and two department stores, [[British Home Stores|BHS]] and [[Debenhams]] which stretches into the ''Regent Crescent'' area of the shopping centre as well.

===Regent Crescent===
Regent Crescent is mainly home to lifestyle and fashion retailers including Reiss, Mango, Monsoon, Coast, [[French Connection]], All Saints and department store Debenhams. The crescent leads to the dome where the first Selfridges to open outside London is housed as an anchor tenant.<ref>{{Cite web |title=The development and its size – Regent Crescent |url=http://www.traffordcentre.co.uk/information/pack/Default.aspx?ID=994 |publisher=www.traffordcentre.co.uk |accessdate=3 November 2010}}</ref>

===Barton Square===
[[File:Barton Square tower.jpg|thumb|left|Barton Square [[campanile]] tower]]
[[File:The Trafford Centre - Barton Square - geograph.org.uk - 1380530.jpg|thumb|right|Barton Square]]
The Trafford Centre announced in October 2005 that permission had been granted for further expansion. Construction started in November 2006<ref>{{Cite news |title=Trafford development |url=http://menmedia.co.uk/manchestereveningnews/news/business/s/228109_trafford_development |newspaper=Manchester Evening News |date=14 November 2006}}</ref> The additional {{convert|19000|m2|sqft}}, which cost £70M, is known as Barton Square and opened on 20&nbsp;March 2008. The name of the square relates to the nearby area of [[Barton-upon-Irwell|Eccles]] and to another of Peel's nearby ventures, [[City Airport Manchester]], which was formerly called [[Barton Aerodrome]]. Barton Square is located to the north-east of the main building and is linked to the rest of the centre via a glazed bridge. The architecture is based on an Italian square and includes a large fountain as well as a [[campanile]] tower.

This section of the centre targets high-quality homewares market with a variety of units offering furniture, kitchens, bathrooms, home furnishings and other goods that are available elsewhere in the Trafford Centre. Retailers operating so far are Next Home, BHS Home, Dwell, Laura Ashley and Habitat. Marks and Spencer Home are due to open their largest store in Barton Square, while keeping their newly extended main store open in Peel Avenue in the centre. A further 630&nbsp;free parking spaces have also been provided. Further adjacent vacant ground exists for future expansion of Barton Square.

==Future expansion==
[[Image:Trafford Centre escalators.jpg|thumb|200px|right|One of the Trafford Centre's three [[Atrium (architecture)|atria]] ]]
[[John Whittaker (businessman)|John Whittaker]], who proposed the Trafford Centre, stated in 2011 that the Trafford Centre is "[[future proof]]" with vacant areas built on the third floor during construction for possible new developments.<ref name="interview"/>

After [[Capital Shopping Centres|Capital Shopping Centre]]'s (CSC) takeover of the Trafford Centre in November 2010, CSC chief executive David Fischel signalled a desire to expand the Trafford Centre and [[Manchester Arndale]].<ref name="expansion">{{Cite news |title=Trafford Centre to get £50m makeover |last=Jupp |first=Adam |url=http://menmedia.co.uk/manchestereveningnews/news/business/s/1409101_trafford_centre_to_get_50m_makeover |newspaper=Manchester Evening News |date=24 February 2011 |accessdate=10 July 2011}}</ref> Immediate plans include constructing a roof for Barton Square and expanding the [[John Lewis]] and [[Marks & Spencer]] outlets, both of which are large [[Anchor tenant|anchor]] stores.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Trafford Centre stays buoyant – but difficult year ahead |url=http://menmedia.co.uk/manchestereveningnews/news/business/enterprise/s/1421004_trafford-centre-stays-buoyant---but-difficult-year-ahead |newspaper=Manchester Evening News |date=17 May 2011}}</ref>

Long-term plans include expanding Barton Square retail space, building new retail areas on unused land and attracting well known retailers that currently do not have a presence at the centre such as [[House of Fraser]], [[Robert Dyas]] and [[Primark]].<ref name="expansion">{{Cite news |title=Going up: Trafford Centre plans extra floors to bring in Primark and House of Fraser |last=Jupp |first=Adam |url=http://menmedia.co.uk/manchestereveningnews/news/s/1378479_going_up_trafford_centre_plans_extra_floors_to_bring_in_primark_and_house_of_fraser |newspaper=Manchester Evening News |date=26 November 2010}}</ref> Plans also include utilising vacant space on upper floors to create new retail opportunities.<ref name="expansion"/>

CSC applied for planning application in September 2011 to increase retail space on the 3rd floor in Barton Square from 18,580m<sup>2</sup> to 28,966m<sup>2</sup> which would increase the Trafford Centre's retail size to approximately 187,000m<sup>2</sup>.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Planning application for Barton Square |url=http://publicaccess.salford.gov.uk/publicaccess/applicationDetails.do?activeTab=summary&keyVal=LSC231NP06300 |work=salford.gov.uk |date=28 September 2011 |accessdate=2011-10-05}}</ref>

==Opening hours==
The stores are open Monday–Friday from 10&nbsp;am – 10&nbsp;pm, Saturday 10&nbsp;am – 8&nbsp;pm (some stores opening at 9&nbsp;am) and Sunday 12&nbsp;noon – 6&nbsp;pm with some stores open from 11&nbsp;am. (However, the [[Sunday Trading Act 1994]] restricts this to a maximum of 6 hours trade.) Stores extend their closing times to 11&nbsp;pm on weekdays in the run-up to Christmas.

The Orient section of the centre is open longer than the retail stores, until at least midnight all week. The Odeon cinema is open from 9:40&nbsp;am – 1&nbsp;am Sunday–Thursday and from 9:40&nbsp;am – 3&nbsp;am on Friday–Saturday.

==Travel and transport==
[[Image:Trafford Welcome.jpg|thumb|300px|right|Trafford Centre car entrance]]

===Road===
The Trafford Centre has over 10,122&nbsp;car spaces and 350&nbsp;coach spaces and is situated just off the [[M60 motorway|M60]] (Junctions 9 and 10). The popularity of the centre has frequently resulted in traffic congestion on the M60's Barton High-Level Bridge, which it is hoped will be alleviated by a new link road, running adjacent to the M60 and crossing the ship canal on a new swing bridge. Unlike many other shopping centres in the United Kingdom, parking is free, however the Trafford Centre encourages its visitors to use the public transport links to reduce congestion and to be more environmentally friendly.

All vehicles entering The Trafford Centre have their number plate details recorded via [[automatic number plate recognition]]. Since its introduction in 2003 at a cost of £220,000<ref name="info">{{Cite news |title=Trafford Centre information pack |url=http://www.traffordcentre.co.uk/media/Community/Information_pack_30.11.10.pdf |work=Trafford Centre |accessdate=10 July 2011}}</ref> the system has reduced the number of thefts of and from vehicles to a level described as "negligible".<ref>{{citation |first=John |last=Scheerhout |title=Spy in sky cure for car crime |url=http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/s/117/117529_spy_in_sky_cure_for_car_crime.html |date=23&nbsp;May 2004 |newspaper=Manchester Evening News |accessdate=12&nbsp;October 2009}}</ref> The majority of cars and visitors to the centre are law-abiding and those number plates are not tracked.<ref name="info"/> The ANPR only tracks cars which are for serious offences such as cars reported stolen as their occupants often commit other offences such as fraud or pose a threat to other visitors to the Trafford Centre for instance. Any car with a [[number plate]] found of a major offence can then be passed to Stretford Police Station and can then dispatch a response vehicle.<ref name="info"/>

===Bus routes===
Numerous bus routes run to the Trafford Centre and a full directory of the bus services can be found on the Trafford Centre's website [http://www.traffordcentre.co.uk/gettinghere/busandtrain/].Major bus links include:
*'''X50''' – Operated with the aim of providing the quickest bus route from the [[Manchester city centre|city centre of Manchester]] to the Trafford Centre. The bus is provided by [[Stagecoach Manchester]] and runs from ''Stand K'' at [[Piccadilly Gardens]] with a frequency of 30 minutes.
*'''100''' – The 100 service, operated by First Manchester, is a bus link direct from Manchester Shudehill Bus Station via Eccles and Salford. The service runs from early till late 363 days a year, every 12 minutes, and is provided using specially branded modern low floor easy-access buses. You can catch the 100 service from stand K at Shudehill Interchange.
*'''250''' – The 250 service, operated by Stagecoach Manchester, is a bus link direct from Manchester Piccadilly Gardens via Manchester United Football Stadium and Manchester University. The service runs from early till late 364 days a year, every 10–15 minutes, and is provided using modern low floor easy-access buses. You can catch the 250 service from stand K at Piccadilly Gardens.
*'''22''' – Operated jointly by [[First Manchester]] and [[Stagecoach Manchester]] with evening journeys operated in the evening by Stagecoach – the bus runs from [[Stockport]] to [[Bolton]] through [[Burnage]], [[Chorlton-cum-Hardy|Chorlton]], [[Stretford]], [[Urmston]] and the Trafford Centre
*'''132''' – Operated by [[South Lancs Travel|SLT]] – the bus runs to [[Wigan]] through [[Worsley]], [[Tyldesley]], [[Atherton, Greater Manchester|Atherton]] and [[Hindley, Greater Manchester|Hindley]] from the Trafford Centre every 30 minutes Monday – Saturday daytime.

===Manchester Metrolink bus link===
Currently (as of 2011) there is no direct Metrolink tram service to the Trafford Centre, however there are numerous bus links and bus routes which run from Metrolink stations to the Trafford Centre.

*'''ML1''' – The shuttle bus links The Trafford Centre to [[Stretford Metrolink station]], every 20 minutes.

===Future transport===
====Metrolink extension====
{{Main|Trafford Centre Metrolink station}}
It is envisaged a new [[Manchester Metrolink]] line will be constructed sometime in the future – however the expansion plan to the Trafford Centre is in its infancy and resources are currently being focused on completing the current extension of the Metrolink by 2016.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Transport chiefs 'lining up trams to Trafford Centre |url=http://menmedia.co.uk/manchestereveningnews/news/transport/s/1315389_transport_chiefs_lining_up_trams_to_trafford_centre |publisher=menmedia.co.uk |date=29 August 2010 |accessdate=3 November 2010}}</ref>

====Manchester Ship Canal ferries====
Plans have been in place since 2006 for a service from [[Salford Quays]] to the Trafford Centre. [[Peel Holdings]] own both the Trafford Centre and the Manchester Ship Canal which creating the possibility of ferries transporting passengers to the Trafford Centre.

Planning permission was granted in 2006 for the construction of a {{convert|600|m|adj=on|sigfig=1}} canal linking the Trafford Centre with the [[Manchester Ship Canal]], allowing for the introduction of a water taxi service to and from [[Salford Quays]]. Construction is expected to take about a year, although no official start date has yet been announced for the project.<ref>{{cite web |title=Waterway to get the shops! |date=20&nbsp;January 2006 |work=Manchester Evening News |url=http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/s/199/199642_waterway_to_get_to_the_shops.html}} Retrieved on 29&nbsp;January 2008.</ref>

As of 2010, none of the plans of utilising the Manchester Ship Canal as a transport link have come to fruition.<ref>{{Cite web |title=New company plans ferries on ship canal |url=http://www.crainsmanchesterbusiness.co.uk/article/20080204/FREE/993983740/1207/-/-/new-company-plans-ferries-on-ship-canal |author=James Chapelard |publisher=Crain's Manchester Business |date=4 February 2008 |accessdate=5 November 2010}}</ref>

==In popular culture==
The Trafford Centre is a major sponsor of [[Salford City Reds]] [[rugby league]] club. Shortly after its opening, the centre provided the setting for ''Shopping City'', a [[BBC Two|BBC2]] daytime programme. The Trafford Centre and nearby [[Trafford Park]] were featured in the 2008 BBC documentary series, ''[[Britain From Above]]'', which highlighted the transition from industry to services.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Story: Shopping Nation |url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/britainfromabove/stories/people/shoppingnation.shtml |work=BBC |accessdate=2011-09-09}}</ref> In 2010, the shopping centre was also the focal point of the [[BBC]] TV show, ''[[The Apprentice (UK TV series)|The Apprentice]]'' in which [[The_Apprentice_(UK_series_six)#Week_5|during week 5]] both teams had to sell designer clothes in the Trafford Centre for one day only.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Video: Apprentice teams set up shops in Trafford Centre |url=http://menmedia.co.uk/manchestereveningnews/tv_and_showbiz/s/1364366_video_apprentice_teams_set_up_shops_in_trafford_centre |work=Manchester Evening News |date=4 November 2010 |accessdate=6 November 2010}}</ref>

==See also==
*[[List of shopping centres in the United Kingdom]]
*[[Manchester Arndale]] – 'In town' shopping centre in [[Manchester city centre]]
*[[Economy of Manchester]]

==References==
;Footnotes
{{Reflist|group=nb}}

;Citations
{{reflist|2}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Trafford Centre}}
*[http://www.traffordcentre.co.uk Official site]
*[http://www.traffordcentre.co.uk/shopping/directory/ ''Trafford Centre'' store directory]
*[http://www.bartonsquare.co.uk ''Barton Square'' site]
*[http://thetraffordcentre.wordpress.com/ ''Trafford Centre'' blog]
;Social networks
*[http://www.facebook.com/traffordcentrefans ''Trafford Centre'' on ''Facebook'']
*[http://twitter.com/#!/traffordcentre ''Trafford Centre'' on ''Twitter'']
*[http://www.youtube.com/user/TraffordCentreTV ''Trafford Centre'' on ''YouTube'']


{{Coord|53.4684|-2.3489|type:landmark_region:GB|display=title}}

[[Category:The Peel Group]]
[[Category:Shopping centres in Greater Manchester]]
[[Category:Buildings and structures in Trafford]]
[[Category:Shopping malls established in 1998]]
[[Category:Bus stations in Greater Manchester]]

[[fr:Trafford Centre]]

Revision as of 10:10, 18 November 2011

Trafford Centre
Map
LocationTrafford, Greater Manchester, England
Opening date10 September 1998[1]
DeveloperThe Peel Group
ManagementMike Butterworth, Managing Director
OwnerCapital Shopping Centres
ArchitectLeach Rhodes Walker[2]
No. of stores and services280
No. of anchor tenants
6
Total retail floor areaRetail: 177,000 m2[4][5]

Leisure: 16,258m2[4]
Dining: 13,935m2[4]

Total: 207,000m2[4]
No. of floors3
Parking10,630[6]
Websitehttp://www.traffordcentre.co.uk

The Trafford Centre is a large indoor shopping centre and leisure complex situated in the Metropolitan Borough of Trafford in Greater Manchester, close to the Trafford Park industrial estate and approximately 5 miles from Manchester city centre. It is the highest valued shopping centre in the United Kingdom at £1.65 billion.[5] The Trafford Centre is the largest shopping centre in the United Kingdom by overall size (including leisure and dining space) and the second largest shopping centre in the UK by retail size.[5]

The site occupied by the Trafford Centre was owned by the Manchester Ship Canal Company until 1986 when the company was acquired by John Whittaker of Peel Holdings who had plans for an out of town shopping centre. The planning process for the Trafford Centre was one of the longest and most expansive in the history of the United Kingdom with concerns surrounding the effect the shopping centre would have on retailers in smaller towns and villages in the Greater Manchester conurbation and also traffic problems being so close to the M60 motorway.[7] Ultimately the matter was decided by the House of Lords in 1996, which voted in favour of the development.[8][9]

Twelve years after the Trafford Centre was first conceptualised by developers the Peel Group, the shopping centre opened in September 1998. Construction took 27 months and cost approximately £600 million (approximately £750M as of 2010), excluding new expansion such as Barton Square and redevelopment of some areas for anchor tenants.[7] Popularly known for its vivid and quirky resemblance to a rococo/late baroque architectural style, the centre employs 8,000 people.[6]

Ten percent of the UK population live within a 45-minute drive of the shopping centre,[6] which attracts more than 35 million visits annually.[10] It has Europe's largest food court in The Orient and the UK's busiest cinema, attracting over 28,500 visitors each week.[6] There are over 10,000 car parking spaces with plans to build a new Metrolink spur and a ferry system from the Manchester Ship Canal to the Centre.

History

The Trafford Centre, located at the bottom of the image, was built on land which was previously owned by the Manchester Ship Canal Company

Manchester City Council[nb 1] retained its seats on the board of the Ship Canal Company until the mid-1980s. By then the arrangement had become "meaningless", as most of the company's shares were controlled by the property developer John Whittaker. In 1986 the council agreed to give up all but one of its seats in return for a payment of £10 million. The arrangement extricated Manchester Council from a possible conflict of interest, as Whittaker was proposing to develop a large out of town shopping centre on land owned by the Ship Canal Company at Dumplington, which would later become the Trafford Centre.

Manchester City Council opposed the scheme, believing that it would impact negatively on the Manchester city centre economy, but accepted that it was "obviously in the interests of the shareholders".[12] £7 million was paid in cash and £3 million invested in a joint venture company set up by Whittaker and the council, Ship Canal Developments. The object of the new company was to provide resources and development expertise for the regeneration of east Manchester.[13] The fund appeased the City Council to an extent, and the land in east Manchester was eventually redeveloped into Sportcity, with the City of Manchester Stadium at the heart of the regeneration.

Peel Holdings submitted a planning application, which totalled approximately 300 acres, to Trafford Metropolitan Borough Council in 1986. The application was subsequently "called in" by the Secretary of State for the Environment and a number of legal disputes ensued. Planning permission for the development had to pass two public enquiries before planning permission was granted. Issues involved possible further congestion on the M60 orbital motorway.[14] The other main issue was the possible consequences on visitors to shopping areas in the vicinity of the Trafford Centre. Some believed the Trafford Centre would have adverse consequencse on shopping figures in neighbouring areas of Greater Manchester. Areas such as Stockport, Wigan, Bolton and as far away as Blackpool and Warrington.[14] Planning permission was granted in 1993.[15] before being thrown out by the Court of Appeal.[15] However planning permission was reinstated and in 1995 the House of Lords gave approval for the Trafford Centre to be built.[16]

Construction began in 1996 and the Trafford Centre finally opened on the 10 September 1998 becoming the UK's first 'mega mall' which combined retail, dining and leisure facilities.[17] Upon opening, the Trafford Centre was the largest shopping centre in the UK but soon lost its title to Bluewater in Kent, however it is the second largest shopping centre in 2011 after numerous expansions.[17] The Peel Group agreed the sale of the centre to Capital Shopping Centres (CSC) in January 2011 for £1.6 billion[18] and a position for John Whittaker, chairman of Peel Group, as deputy chairman of CSC.[19] This followed a failed £2.9 billion bid by Simon Property Group for Capital Shopping Centres.[20] Nevertheless, the lower £1.6 billion was the UK's largest ever property transaction.[21]

Architecture and design

Looking up into the main domed cupola of the Trafford Centre, decorated at a cost of £5M

The Trafford Centre was built by Bovis Lend Lease and opened in 1998,[22] it has 1,900,000 square feet (180,000 m2) of retail space.[5] It is made up of four main areas located across two floors: Peel Avenue, Regent Crescent, The Dome, and The Orient. It was designed so that visitors enter on both of the two main shopping floors in equal numbers.[23] This helps avoid the problem suffered by other centres, such as the MetroCentre, where visitors do not go to upper floors, consequently many large retailers avoid upper floor units. A third floor exists for the Odeon Cinema, and other leisure facilities such as Laser Quest. In addition to the three floors, the Trafford Centre is "future-proof" in the words of developer John Whittaker with existing prepared areas for an additional fourth floor which was built during construction.[24]

When we first started the architects said, "you shouldn’t be doing all this and giving it all the razzmatazz and showbiz, leave that to the retailers. Make it plain, make it clinical, make it white and hospitalised and let them do the work". So then we put in the paintings, we put in the real gold leaf, we put artefacts everywhere, paintings. It is the people’s palace. It is something to attract shoppers ... to give them the Dallas effect.

— John Whittaker, owner of The Peel Group which developed the Trafford Centre on the mall's design.[24]

The Trafford Centre's interior and exterior architecture is Rococo/late Baroque in design, with elements of Art Deco and Egyptian Revival, and decorated primarily in shades of white, pink and gold with ivory, jade and caramel coloured marble throughout. Three domed atria are located along the length of the mall, with Peel claiming the middle dome is bigger than the dome at St Paul's Cathedral[25], and costed £5 million to construct alone.[24]

The Trafford Centre also has £5.8 million (1996 value) of marble and granite flooring[26] and gold leaf adorns the building's columns.[25] The marble flooring are polished every night along with rails giving the shopping centre an opulent style.[27] Others however have criticised the deception of the fake palm trees and neo-classical decorative pillars which are not marble.[27] The Peel Group say that the striking and extrovert architecture is aimed at providing visual delight, to make the visitor's shopping experience more vivid and interesting.[28]

Portraits running around the top of the walls of the mall depict members of the Whittaker family, founders of owner Peel Holdings. A Mercedes car belonging to the mother of Peel Holdings' chairman, John Whittaker, is on display on the first floor mall outside F. Hinds.

Focal points

The Orient is Europe's largest food court, with seating for 1,600 and 60 restaurants, cafés, and bars.[6]

The Orient

The Trafford Centre's main non-retail is located in a central hall-like spur called The Orient, primarily a 1,600-seat food court which is mainly themed on a ship but incorporates designs from around the world including China, New Orleans, Egypt, Italy, America and Morocco.[29]

On both floors, The Orient has dozens of restaurants and bars including The Exchange Bar & Grill, TGI Fridays, Starbucks, Est Est Est, Ma Potter's, Nando's and Cathay Dim Sum. There are also several popular fast food outlets – McDonald's, KFC, Subway, Harry Ramsdens and Pizza Hut among others. Burger King recently moved into the Trafford Centre in November 2011.[30] The fast food outlet previously had a presence in the Festival Village area of the Trafford Centre until its closure in 2003 to allow conversion to a John Lewis anchor store.

Furthermore the area also has non-dining facilities and includes a 20-screen Odeon[31] multiplex cinema (which is the busiest in the UK), a Laser Quest arena, Paradise Island Adventure Golf (miniature golf), a large Namco Centre with Dodgems, Bowling, and Arcade games.

The Great Hall

The Great Hall

The Great Hall houses an elegant sweeping staircase featuring hundreds of metres of marble balustrade from China and the Trafford Centre claims it to be the largest chandelier in the world.[32]

The chandelier was designed by English lighting consultants, and then sent to China for manufacture; assembly and installation was done by local contractors. The chandelier has three levels of plant walkways inside, is around 11 m (36 feet) wide and 15 m (49 feet) high, weighs around five tonnes, and has more lighting control systems than most shopping centres.

A new area adjoining the Orient, known as The Great Hall, opened fully in March 2007, although a Costa Coffee outlet opened earlier in January 2007. This new glazed structure houses five new restaurants and cafes. Construction took 18 months at a cost of £26 million.[32]

The decision to extend the current dining facilities was due to the growth in demand amongst visitors wishing to dine during their stay, or indeed visit The Trafford Centre during the evening specifically for food and drink.

Shopping areas and stores

Peel Avenue

Shops inside the centre

Peel Avenue is home to the high street shops such as an Apple Store, H&M, and Boots. It is also home to two department stores, the new John Lewis which opened in 2005 at the end of Peel Avenue, and the newly refubished four-storey Marks & Spencer, (see below). The retail unit now occupied by John Lewis at the one end of the Centre was previously a market-themed area for independent stores and was called Festival Village.

The latest development to be completed is the new four-storey Marks and Spencer. This now features an outside entrance to the foodhall, which will mean that customers doing their food shopping at Marks and Spencer can take their bags straight out to the car park, rather than walking through the mall. The Dome is in the middle of the centre and is home to more upmarket stores such as the first Selfridges outside of London. Regent Crescent is home to many high-end designer stores, including Karen Millen, Jane Norman, Gap and Mexx. It also houses the bookshop Waterstones and two department stores, BHS and Debenhams which stretches into the Regent Crescent area of the shopping centre as well.

Regent Crescent

Regent Crescent is mainly home to lifestyle and fashion retailers including Reiss, Mango, Monsoon, Coast, French Connection, All Saints and department store Debenhams. The crescent leads to the dome where the first Selfridges to open outside London is housed as an anchor tenant.[33]

Barton Square

Barton Square campanile tower
Barton Square

The Trafford Centre announced in October 2005 that permission had been granted for further expansion. Construction started in November 2006[34] The additional 19,000 square metres (200,000 sq ft), which cost £70M, is known as Barton Square and opened on 20 March 2008. The name of the square relates to the nearby area of Eccles and to another of Peel's nearby ventures, City Airport Manchester, which was formerly called Barton Aerodrome. Barton Square is located to the north-east of the main building and is linked to the rest of the centre via a glazed bridge. The architecture is based on an Italian square and includes a large fountain as well as a campanile tower.

This section of the centre targets high-quality homewares market with a variety of units offering furniture, kitchens, bathrooms, home furnishings and other goods that are available elsewhere in the Trafford Centre. Retailers operating so far are Next Home, BHS Home, Dwell, Laura Ashley and Habitat. Marks and Spencer Home are due to open their largest store in Barton Square, while keeping their newly extended main store open in Peel Avenue in the centre. A further 630 free parking spaces have also been provided. Further adjacent vacant ground exists for future expansion of Barton Square.

Future expansion

One of the Trafford Centre's three atria

John Whittaker, who proposed the Trafford Centre, stated in 2011 that the Trafford Centre is "future proof" with vacant areas built on the third floor during construction for possible new developments.[24]

After Capital Shopping Centre's (CSC) takeover of the Trafford Centre in November 2010, CSC chief executive David Fischel signalled a desire to expand the Trafford Centre and Manchester Arndale.[35] Immediate plans include constructing a roof for Barton Square and expanding the John Lewis and Marks & Spencer outlets, both of which are large anchor stores.[36]

Long-term plans include expanding Barton Square retail space, building new retail areas on unused land and attracting well known retailers that currently do not have a presence at the centre such as House of Fraser, Robert Dyas and Primark.[35] Plans also include utilising vacant space on upper floors to create new retail opportunities.[35]

CSC applied for planning application in September 2011 to increase retail space on the 3rd floor in Barton Square from 18,580m2 to 28,966m2 which would increase the Trafford Centre's retail size to approximately 187,000m2.[37]

Opening hours

The stores are open Monday–Friday from 10 am – 10 pm, Saturday 10 am – 8 pm (some stores opening at 9 am) and Sunday 12 noon – 6 pm with some stores open from 11 am. (However, the Sunday Trading Act 1994 restricts this to a maximum of 6 hours trade.) Stores extend their closing times to 11 pm on weekdays in the run-up to Christmas.

The Orient section of the centre is open longer than the retail stores, until at least midnight all week. The Odeon cinema is open from 9:40 am – 1 am Sunday–Thursday and from 9:40 am – 3 am on Friday–Saturday.

Travel and transport

Trafford Centre car entrance

Road

The Trafford Centre has over 10,122 car spaces and 350 coach spaces and is situated just off the M60 (Junctions 9 and 10). The popularity of the centre has frequently resulted in traffic congestion on the M60's Barton High-Level Bridge, which it is hoped will be alleviated by a new link road, running adjacent to the M60 and crossing the ship canal on a new swing bridge. Unlike many other shopping centres in the United Kingdom, parking is free, however the Trafford Centre encourages its visitors to use the public transport links to reduce congestion and to be more environmentally friendly.

All vehicles entering The Trafford Centre have their number plate details recorded via automatic number plate recognition. Since its introduction in 2003 at a cost of £220,000[1] the system has reduced the number of thefts of and from vehicles to a level described as "negligible".[38] The majority of cars and visitors to the centre are law-abiding and those number plates are not tracked.[1] The ANPR only tracks cars which are for serious offences such as cars reported stolen as their occupants often commit other offences such as fraud or pose a threat to other visitors to the Trafford Centre for instance. Any car with a number plate found of a major offence can then be passed to Stretford Police Station and can then dispatch a response vehicle.[1]

Bus routes

Numerous bus routes run to the Trafford Centre and a full directory of the bus services can be found on the Trafford Centre's website [1].Major bus links include:

  • X50 – Operated with the aim of providing the quickest bus route from the city centre of Manchester to the Trafford Centre. The bus is provided by Stagecoach Manchester and runs from Stand K at Piccadilly Gardens with a frequency of 30 minutes.
  • 100 – The 100 service, operated by First Manchester, is a bus link direct from Manchester Shudehill Bus Station via Eccles and Salford. The service runs from early till late 363 days a year, every 12 minutes, and is provided using specially branded modern low floor easy-access buses. You can catch the 100 service from stand K at Shudehill Interchange.
  • 250 – The 250 service, operated by Stagecoach Manchester, is a bus link direct from Manchester Piccadilly Gardens via Manchester United Football Stadium and Manchester University. The service runs from early till late 364 days a year, every 10–15 minutes, and is provided using modern low floor easy-access buses. You can catch the 250 service from stand K at Piccadilly Gardens.
  • 22 – Operated jointly by First Manchester and Stagecoach Manchester with evening journeys operated in the evening by Stagecoach – the bus runs from Stockport to Bolton through Burnage, Chorlton, Stretford, Urmston and the Trafford Centre
  • 132 – Operated by SLT – the bus runs to Wigan through Worsley, Tyldesley, Atherton and Hindley from the Trafford Centre every 30 minutes Monday – Saturday daytime.

Currently (as of 2011) there is no direct Metrolink tram service to the Trafford Centre, however there are numerous bus links and bus routes which run from Metrolink stations to the Trafford Centre.

Future transport

Main article: Trafford Centre Metrolink station

It is envisaged a new Manchester Metrolink line will be constructed sometime in the future – however the expansion plan to the Trafford Centre is in its infancy and resources are currently being focused on completing the current extension of the Metrolink by 2016.[39]

Manchester Ship Canal ferries

Plans have been in place since 2006 for a service from Salford Quays to the Trafford Centre. Peel Holdings own both the Trafford Centre and the Manchester Ship Canal which creating the possibility of ferries transporting passengers to the Trafford Centre.

Planning permission was granted in 2006 for the construction of a 600-metre (2,000 ft) canal linking the Trafford Centre with the Manchester Ship Canal, allowing for the introduction of a water taxi service to and from Salford Quays. Construction is expected to take about a year, although no official start date has yet been announced for the project.[40]

As of 2010, none of the plans of utilising the Manchester Ship Canal as a transport link have come to fruition.[41]

The Trafford Centre is a major sponsor of Salford City Reds rugby league club. Shortly after its opening, the centre provided the setting for Shopping City, a BBC2 daytime programme. The Trafford Centre and nearby Trafford Park were featured in the 2008 BBC documentary series, Britain From Above, which highlighted the transition from industry to services.[42] In 2010, the shopping centre was also the focal point of the BBC TV show, The Apprentice in which during week 5 both teams had to sell designer clothes in the Trafford Centre for one day only.[43]

See also

References

Footnotes
  1. ^ Manchester Corporation was subsumed into the newly created Greater Manchester County Council in 1974 until 1986, when the unitary authority of Manchester City Council was established.[11]
Citations
  1. ^ a b c d "Trafford Centre information pack" (PDF). Trafford Centre. Retrieved 10 July 2011.
  2. ^ "The Construction Programme – The Trafford Centre". www.traffordcentre.co.uk. Retrieved 2 November 2010.
  3. ^ "The story of John Lewis Trafford Centre". johnlewis.com. Retrieved 3 November 2010.
  4. ^ a b c d "Shopping Centres – Trafford Centre". Capital Shopping Centres. Retrieved 15 September 2011.
  5. ^ a b c d "Portfolio". Capital Shopping Centres. Retrieved 17 June 2011.
  6. ^ a b c d e "Portfolio". Capital Shopping Centres. Retrieved 17 June 2011.
  7. ^ a b "The Shops – Trafford Centre". www.manchester2002-uk.com. Retrieved 3 November 2010.
  8. ^ House of Lords (1995) "Opinions of the Lords of Appeal for Judgment in the cause Bolton Metropolitan District Council and others (respondents) versus Secretary of State for the Environment and others (appellants)" 24 May, written by Lord Lloyd of Berwick.
  9. ^ Trafford Centre (1997) "From de Trafford to the House of Lords" Trafford Centre Insight, Brochure.
  10. ^ Bounds, Andrew (29 December 2010). "Tills ring at Trafford Centre". Financial Times. Visitor numbers increased by 6.4 per cent year-on-year to more than 35m.
  11. ^ Greater Manchester County Record Office (with Manchester Archives) Guide to Local Government Records (DOC), Manchester Library & Information Service, retrieved 7 August 2011 {{citation}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  12. ^ King 2006, pp. 98–100
  13. ^ King, Ray (2006). Detonation: Rebirth of a City. Clear Publications. p. 98-100. ISBN 0-9552621-0-0.
  14. ^ a b "Taking a malling". economist.com. 10 September 1998. Retrieved 2011-09-13.
  15. ^ a b Stevenson, Tom (15 July 1994). "Slow net asset growth hits Peel". The Independent.
  16. ^ http://www.poptel.org.uk/trafford.park/7.HTM
  17. ^ a b Hall, James (18 September 2010). "Westfield Stratford – Britain's last mega-mall". The Telegraph. Retrieved 2011-09-16.
  18. ^ "Trafford Centre in Greater Manchester sold by Peel". BBC. 25 November 2010.
  19. ^ "About us – Non-Executive Directors". Capital Shopping Centres. Retrieved 12 July 2011.
  20. ^ Kollewe, Julia (11 January 2011). "Sale of Trafford Centre ends battle for control of CSC". The Guardian. London.
  21. ^ Ruddick, Graham (27 January 2011). "Capital Shopping Centres seals £1.6bn Trafford Centre deal despite Simon Property Group's concerns". The Telegraph. Retrieved 2011-09-15. Capital Shopping Centres has sealed the UK's largest ever property transaction after 80pc of shareholders backed its £1.6bn acquisition of the Trafford Centre.
  22. ^ "Bovis' reputation is cornering the shopping market]", Contract Journal, 17 September 1997 {{citation}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  23. ^ http://www.traffordcentre.co.uk/downloads/traffinfo.pdf
  24. ^ a b c d "Whittaker has more to offer than the rococo". Financial Times. 11 February 2011. Retrieved 2011-09-15.
  25. ^ a b Swanton, Oliver (2 September 1998). "The mall that ate Manchester". The Independent.
  26. ^ "Trafford Centre fact file". Lancashire Telegraph. 19 December 1997. Retrieved 10 July 2011.
  27. ^ a b "Trafford Centre – shopping hell or heaven?". bbc.co.uk. 31 December 2001. Retrieved 3 November 2010.
  28. ^ "Design Statement – The Interior". www.traffordcentre.co.uk. Retrieved 3 November 2010.
  29. ^ "The development and its size". www.traffordcentre.co.uk. Retrieved 3 November 2010.
  30. ^ "Whopper deals For Burger King as it expands on shopping centre presence". eatoutmagazine.co.uk. 4 October 2011. Retrieved 2011-10-05.
  31. ^ "Odeon – Trafford Centre". www.odeon.co.uk. Retrieved 3 November 2010.
  32. ^ a b "Biggest chandelier in the world?". Manchester Evening News. 15 March 2007. Retrieved 10 July 2011.
  33. ^ "The development and its size – Regent Crescent". www.traffordcentre.co.uk. Retrieved 3 November 2010.
  34. ^ "Trafford development". Manchester Evening News. 14 November 2006.
  35. ^ a b c Jupp, Adam (24 February 2011). "Trafford Centre to get £50m makeover". Manchester Evening News. Retrieved 10 July 2011. Cite error: The named reference "expansion" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  36. ^ "Trafford Centre stays buoyant – but difficult year ahead". Manchester Evening News. 17 May 2011.
  37. ^ "Planning application for Barton Square". salford.gov.uk. 28 September 2011. Retrieved 2011-10-05.
  38. ^ Scheerhout, John (23 May 2004), "Spy in sky cure for car crime", Manchester Evening News, retrieved 12 October 2009 {{citation}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= and |date= (help)
  39. ^ "Transport chiefs 'lining up trams to Trafford Centre". menmedia.co.uk. 29 August 2010. Retrieved 3 November 2010.
  40. ^ "Waterway to get the shops!". Manchester Evening News. 20 January 2006. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help) Retrieved on 29 January 2008.
  41. ^ James Chapelard (4 February 2008). "New company plans ferries on ship canal". Crain's Manchester Business. Retrieved 5 November 2010.
  42. ^ "Story: Shopping Nation". BBC. Retrieved 2011-09-09.
  43. ^ "Video: Apprentice teams set up shops in Trafford Centre". Manchester Evening News. 4 November 2010. Retrieved 6 November 2010.
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53°28′06″N 2°20′56″W / 53.4684°N 2.3489°W / 53.4684; -2.3489

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