Manchester Metrolink interavailability during disruptions

[maniacmartin]

I was in Manchester yesterday for a day out, and planned to catch the 22:17 departure from Manchester Piccadilly to Altrincham to get to our Travelodge. Unfortunately this train was then cancelled.

Station staff advised that we had to wait an hour for the 23:17, and if we wanted to take the Metrolink then we would need to purchase additional Metrolink tickets at our own expense. It appears that there are no agreements between ATOC and Metrolink allowing passengers to travel on each others' services during a disruption.

This came as a surprise to me, as in London there are extensive agreements between ATOC and TfL, whereby they agree to carry each others' passengers in case of a disruption. I would imagine that it is mutually beneficial as the operators don't have to pay out as much Delay Repay, and passengers are also better off.

With the growth of Metrolink, there are now dual Metro/NR routes to Rochdale, Altrincham, Eccles and soon Ashton-under-Lyne, so the case for such an arrangement is quite strong. Whether we will actually see it is another question.

Also, Metrolink tram tickets are expensive, compared to the Greater Manchester Rail Rover!

 

[hairyhandedfool]

....Station staff advised that we had to wait an hour for the 23:17, and if we wanted to take the Metrolink then we would need to purchase additional Metrolink tickets at our own expense. It appears that there are no agreements between ATOC and Metrolink allowing passengers to travel on each others' services during a disruption.....

There are relatively few agreements for when there isn't disruption, much less when there is, however, 'severe disruption' on the railway sometimes gets some sort of temporary agreement, usually until replacement buses are up and running.

....This came as a surprise to me, as in London there are extensive agreements between ATOC and TfL, whereby they agree to carry each others' passengers in case of a disruption. I would imagine that it is mutually beneficial as the operators don't have to pay out as much Delay Repay, and passengers are also better off....

As far as I am aware TfL don't have a vested interest in you buying a new ticket, Tendencies for Greater Metrolink do.

....With the growth of Metrolink, there are now dual Metro/NR routes to Rochdale, Altrincham, Eccles and soon Ashton-under-Lyne, so the case for such an arrangement is quite strong. Whether we will actually see it is another question....

See above.

....Also, Metrolink tram tickets are expensive, compared to the Greater Manchester Rail Rover!

True, but then a single ticket from Manchester Stations to Rochdale (by Rail) is expensive compared to a Rail Ranger!

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

Tendencies for Greater Metrolink do.

Greater Metrolink...now that sounds a new marketing tool for TfGM to use in their publicity..

 

[swt_passenger]

I would think that nowadays a significant majority of London travellers are using inter-available tickets anyway, such as travelcards (either paper or Oyster) or Oyster PAYG.

When they say 'tickets are being accepted on LU' it's pretty irrelevant for many because they are already valid...

 

[LNW-GW Joint]

And yet there's a standard arrangement for Mid-Cheshire line passengers (not Chester) to use Metrolink from Altrincham on Sundays.
This was from the days when the trains terminated at Altrincham.
One would hope this thing called "Rail North" would sort out interavailability.

 

[Starmill]

Yes, East Didsbury too.

The thing is... an agreement wouldn't be all that helpful anyway. In your case, passengers for Stockport and Chester (admittedly, there would have been very few for either on the 22:17) had a fast ATW service to use. Metrolink validity would have cost Northern £X and only sorted them passengers for Navvy Road and Altrincham. That's still Hale to Mouldsworth inclusive they've got to 'deal with' - in this case by having them sit around at Piccadilly for an hour and paying the meagre compensation to anyone who bothered to claim it.

Empirically, I have never ever known trams or trains to have interavailability during disruption to either, but normal service buses are used as tram replacements rather regularly.
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---

As far as I am aware TfL don't have a vested interest in you buying a new ticket, Tendencies for Greater Metrolink do.

I like it

 

[185]

As mentioned above, ultimately, TfGM forming their "Rail In The North Executive" with the other adjacent PTE's may see the end of the two, very separate ticketing systems of Metrolink and ATOC.

Metrolink's new Bachmann ticket machines are capable of modification over to ATOC's standard requirements, so there could be scope for change in years to come. Very early days yet however and many other ideas are doing the rounds too.

 

[Starmill]

Metrolink's new Bachmann ticket machines are capable of modification over to ATOC's standard requirements, so there could be scope for change in years to come. Very early days yet however and many other ideas are doing the rounds too.

Indeed, a few of us possibly from this thread were discussing if Metrolink's TVMs could be 're-equipped' to encode magnetic stripes if National Rail stations start to gain more barriers for example. Is the hardware in place as standard on the machine and just unused at present, or would it need to be fitted?

 

[northwichcat]

Tickets are interchangeable between Altrincham and Manchester on Sundays only (if the origin or destination is between Mouldsworth and Navigation Road.) Occasionally if there are blockades at Stockport on a Saturday then the validity is extended to all weekend but other than that tickets aren't interchangeable.

When there was major Metrolink engineering works (track replacement) and the Pacers were in warm storage at Blackpool TfGM arranged for 5 of them to be used to strengthen Mid-Cheshire services and for Metrolink tickets to be accepted on Northern Rail, as well as the replacement bus services.

However, the next time there was major Metrolink engineering works (overhead wires replacement) the 142s had gone to FGW and the same arrangement didn't apply. The replacement buses were also single deckers instead of double deckers!

 

[hairyhandedfool]

....Empirically, I have never ever known trams or trains to have interavailability during disruption to either, but normal service buses are used as tram replacements rather regularly....

The only example I can give (for certain) was when 47500 derailed on Ordsall Lane Junction. That afternoon Metrolink allowed rail tickets on the Eccles branch....until a tram broke down on it. Before the tram was up and running again the replacement buses were, allegedly, running so no rail tickets were valid.

 

[northwichcat]

Metrolink's new Bachmann ticket machines are capable of modification over to ATOC's standard requirements, so there could be scope for change in years to come. Very early days yet however and many other ideas are doing the rounds too.

Being able to offer tickets from Metrolink stops to NR stations outside of GM, in the same way any NR ticket office outside GM should be able to offer a through ticket to the correct Metrolink stop or zone, would be a start.

Also ticket machines that do both Metrolink and National Rail would be good at interchange stations.