Port Salford
| Port Salford | |
|---|---|
 A render of the Port Salford freight terminal | |
 Click on the map for a fullscreen view | |
| Location | |
| Country | England |
| Location | Barton-upon-Irwell, Eccles, City of Salford, Greater Manchester, England |
| Details | |
| Opened | 2015 (proposed) |
| Owned by | Peel Ports |
| Statistics | |
| Website http://www.peel.co.uk/projects/portsalford | |
Port Salford is a freight terminal currently[when?] under construction on the banks of the Manchester Ship Canal in Barton-upon-Irwell in the City of Salford, Greater Manchester, England, approximately 6 miles (9.7 km) west of Manchester city centre. The port is part of the Atlantic Gateway project and is being led by Peel Ports, a subsidiary of The Peel Group.
Port Salford will cost £400 million to construct[1] with the transportation of goods from the terminal to be mainly distributed via heavy rail, of which 18 freight trains will be needed every 24 hours to handle the volume of goods.[1]
Port Salford will be the first tri-modal (sea, road and rail) inland port in the UK.
Background
Port Salford will be based on the banks of the Manchester Ship Canal, the only ship canal in the United Kingdom and the eighth longest in the world.[1] The canal connects Manchester, a national city of cultural and economic significance, to the Irish Sea. The Ship Canal was completed in 1894 and designed to give Manchester unhindered access to the sea. At its peak in the 1960s, the Manchester Docks were the third busiest in the United Kingdom.[2]
Development
The Port will be located near key sites for distribution of goods such as Manchester and Trafford Park. Construction tenders were handed out in March 2011[3] and it is envisaged building of the Port will begin in 2013.
Western Gateway Infrastructure Scheme
As part of the Western Gateway Infrastructure Scheme (WGIS), a new link road will be constructed in connection with the Port. The existing A57 road will be redirected closer to the Salford City Stadium, and a mile-long new dual carriageway link to Trafford Way and a new lift bridge over the Manchester Ship Canal will be constructed to the east of the M60 bridge. [4] Port Salford was formerly planned to be fully operational from 2015 onwards.[5]
WGIS involves significant highway works around the M60 motorway, both in Salford and in Trafford, as well as a new rail link from the Liverpool-Manchester railway line (Chat Moss corridor) into the Port Salford intermodal freight interchange.
The contract for WGIS was awarded to Hochtief and the Buckingham Group in December 2012[6] and construction began in January 2013 for completion in 2016.[7]
References
- ^ a b c "Port Project: Are There Calmer Seas Ahead?". Sky News. 30 July 2009.
- ^ "Former workers recall working life of Salford Docks". BBC. 26 January 2011. Retrieved 2011-08-26.
- ^ "Peel publishes Port Salford tenders". manchesterconfidential.co.uk. 30 March 2011. Retrieved 2011-08-26.
- ^ http://www.salfordcitystadium.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/Travel-Plan-salford.pdf
- ^ http://www.peel.co.uk/media/Key%20Projects/A57_Road_Improvements_Scheme_FAQs.pdf
- ^ http://www.constructionenquirer.com/2012/12/17/buckingham-and-hochtief-win-25m-salford-roads-job/
- ^ Hochtief, http://www.hochtief-construction.co.uk/roads_WGIS.shtml