Highways Engineer Bryn Buck MIHE has gone to extraordinary lengths to produce the following proposal and design drawings of how Great Ancoats Street could look if Manchester City Council is serious about its Climate Declaration, commitment to Active Travel, and obligations on Clean Air.

​These proposals illustrate a viable proof of concept that show a superior and future-proofed alternative is possible.

Caveat: Manchester City Council vehicle capacity requirements

Manchester City Council's current policy is that all new Inner Ring Road improvement work must not reduce motor vehicle capacity.
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This proposal therefore maintains the current 2 vehicle travel lanes in each direction, and gains additional space and improved flow through elegant rationalisation of turns.

​This boosts Great Ancoats' efficiency, enabling a reduction in the number of stop lights and improving congestion and pollution through reduced vehicle stopping, starting, and idling.

Additionally, large numbers of safe bicycle trips are enabled by this scheme, unlocking potential for significant modal shift.

The next section consists of Bryn’s proposal - the result of a huge amount of work on his own time. Thank you Bryn!!

The more technically-minded among you might like to read the following in conjunction with these high resolution engineering drawings of the Great Ancoats Street: Boulevard Concept (12MB).

Great Ancoats Street: Boulevard Concept

The proposed re-design of Manchester City Council’s frankly unambitious scheme for Great Ancoats Street is intended to properly strike a balance between the competing needs of road users on this critical urban corridor.

Traffic levels have actually decreased on Great Ancoats Street
It is important to note that over the previous few years, traffic volumes have generally followed a downward trend on Great Ancoats Street. Recent spikes in flow have been a result of roadworks elsewhere in the city causing diversions and general avoidance. This therefore suggests that increasing motor vehicle capacity would be counter-productive due to induced demand. It also is against the stated aims of Transport for Greater Manchester to increase motor vehicle capacity at the expense of active travel!

​We're stuck with the ring road, but it can be much improved
Whilst more radical ideas include removing the ring road entirely, this would not be a viable proposition as the city centre has been designed over the past two decades since the IRA bombing in 1996 to function with a ring; removing it means returning undesirable through movements to other streets. Whilst the concept of traffic evaporation is sound, the actual reality of attempting it could at this stage prove catastrophic. Therefore it is believed to be more acceptable to create a boulevard feel that still caters for essential motorised traffic but does not overall negatively affect cycling and walking.

Source: ITV News

​The Great Ancoats Street corridor is presently hostile to active travel and not an attractive thoroughfare in the continually changing context of Ancoats and the Northern Quarter.

​It forms a major barrier between the two.
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The Proposal

​It is proposed to provide a continuous bi-directional cycle route between New Cross (the junction of Oldham Road and the ring road) and Pollard Street. This corridor will be four metres wide to allow larger cargo-bikes access - enabling zero carbon last mile deliveries to local homes and businesses.

At both ends, temporary tie-ins to the existing road layouts will be provided to allow future continuation. This corridor will have signal control at major junctions and priority over side roads through the use of continuous footways, or where space is restricted, the use of clearly defined road markings supported by upright signage.
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Several amendments at junctions are proposed to accommodate the cycle corridor and to reduce rat-running into unsuitable side streets:

• A reconfigured New Cross junction to create parallel cycle routes and a safer conflict free route into Oldham Street.
• Restricting Oldham Street to public transport and cyclists only; at present general traffic has access as far as Dale Street before being dumped into a narrow and unsuitable network on narrow streets in the Northern Quarter. Any traffic access arrangements should prioritise moving motor vehicles to the Red Lion Street MSCP. It is believed the Stevenson Square scheme should take this into account.

Source: @GBCyclingEmbassy

A continuous bi-directional cycle route on Great Ancoats Street will enable safe local journeys and create ideal conditions for 'modal shift' from cars.

It is the first piece of the jigsaw unlocking Cheetham Hill, Bradford, Miles Platting,  New Islington and districts beyond to safe cycling.
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Orford Road - walking & cycling street, Waltham Forest, London Source: wesupportmh.wordpress.com

Lever Street and George Leigh Street will be converted to walking and cycling corridors to allow a safe active travel route between Ancoats and the city centre.

​This will boost footfall on Lever Street and fuel investment in this part of the Northern Quarter.
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• Lomax Street will be closed where it meets Great Ancoats Street in order to protect the cycle corridor.
• A continuous footway will be provided at the junction with Ducie Street. This movement into the city centre should be discouraged for motor traffic.
• A new mid-block crossing to allow additional pedestrian movements from the former Manchester Central Retail Park site.
• A revised signal junction at Old Mill Street to improve cycling safety including early start signals for cyclists travelling north-south and vice versa.
• Cycle crossings to bring cyclists back into with-flow cycling beyond Pollard Street heading southbound. Temporary tie-ins are to be provided pending future improvements to the remainder of Great Ancoats Street.
• Where bus stops interact with the cycle corridor, full bypasses are proposed to reduce pedestrian and cycling conflicts.

• ​Spear Street will become a one-way exit from the Northern Quarter onto the northbound ring road only.
• Conversion of Lever Street and George Leigh Street to walking and cycling corridors to allow a safe active travel route between Ancoats and the city centre. This will boost footfall on Lever Street and regenerate this part of the Northern Quarter.
• Re-definiton of Newton Street as the motor vehicle route into the Northern Quarter, allowing access to Piccadilly. This would be a low capacity route to deter rat-running but prioritise deliveries and other essential city centre traffic. Blossom Street will remain a one-way access into Ancoats, limited to vehicles not exceeding 3 tonnes.
• Jersey Street will become a one-way exit from Ancoats with access onto the southbound ring road only.
• Conversion of Port Street to a modal filter allowing for a safe cycling route from the proposed former Manchester Central Retail Park residential development.
• A junction will be retained at Redhill Street to allow motor vehicle access to Ancoats. No signals will be provided to deter rat-running.
• A new signal controlled junction to provide access to the Urban Exchange development in order to protect the cycle corridor from ‘left hook’ turns.
• A reconfigured junction to allow motor vehicle and cycling access to the former Manchester Central Retail Park site.

'Supercrossing', Granby Street, Leicester. Source: gov.uk

A new mid-block crossing will allow additional pedestrian movements from the former Manchester Central Retail Park.
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Hundreds of new homes are planned to be built on this site.
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Victoria Embankment, London. Source: Martin Godwin/guardian.co.uk

The proposal retains two lanes of motor vehicle traffic in each direction - elegant rationalisation of turns minimises stopping, starting, and idling and allows vehicle journey times to remain neutral.

Large numbers of new cycling trips are also enabled creating ideal conditions for modal shift.
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The proposal retains two lanes of motor traffic in each direction. By rationalising the number of turns signal stages can be optimised and the time gained can be used for the cycle corridor meaning that overall motor vehicle journey times should remain neutral.

​However, large numbers of cycling trips are enabled by the changes and this in turn creates the ideal conditions for modal shift as journeys from the wider city that require use of Great Ancoats Street by bicycle are now catered for. This is the first piece in the jigsaw that will unlock Cheetham Hill, Bradford, Miles Platting, New Islington, and districts beyond to safe cycling.

The proposed central reservations could be designed to become urban wildflower sites along with tree planting. In turn this will attract urban bee populations, provide a greener and more attractive corridor, and provide the city centre with a green strip in an area that is heavily dominated by ‘hard’ landscaping.
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Improved lighting, signing, lining, and the active travel corridor will additionally reduce road casualties through provision of a simpler road layout and removal of numerous modal conflicts. To further improve safety the imposition a 20mph speed limit between New Cross and Pollard Street may be considered.

At present the Council are still ploughing ahead with their flawed plan

We think the alternative Boulevard Concept shows we could do this so much better.  We urge the Council to hit 'pause' on their scheme - and explore better options for Great Ancoats with constructive community engagement.

Let the Council know your thoughts here:     greatancoatsstreet@manchester.gov.uk 

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There is still time to get this right. 

Find out what needs to happen next and how to support this alternative proposal