A Transport Hub Fit For A Major Airport
I’ve only been to Manchester Airport once and that was many years ago, when I flew my Piper Arrow into the then single-runway airport.
On my trip north today, I wanted to take a ride on one of the refurbished Class 319 trains running between the airport and Liverpool Lime Street, so as I got a good deal on tickets including a trip in First to Crewe, I went via the airport.
The pictures show the rail station at the airport, which has three platforms for trains and one for the Metrolink. A fourth rail platform is under construction.
Most of the pictures were taken looking towards the entry to the station, with the platforms being number 1, 2 3 and 4 for right to left (south to north).
If the Metrolink platform was given a number, it would be five.
This Google Earth image shows the station and the surrounding area.
Manchester Airport Station
Note the current three rail platforms with the Metrolink between them and the bus station. My Class 323 train from Crewe arrived on the southernmost platform, which is numbered one. Platforms two and three are either side of a long island and it would appear that the construction work between platform three and the Metrolink and the bus station will be the new platform four.
A station-man indicated that the lines into the station are a bit limited and expansion of the rail links out of the station might be something to upgrade in the future.
One difference between this airport station and most of the other ones I’ve visited was that it wasn’t buried deep in a dark claustrophobic pit under the airport. So I was able to walk up and down in the sun, whilst waiting for my train!
My only disappointment was that instead of getting a refurbished Class 319 train, I got a clean Class 156 train.
The Anonymous Widower 