'It shows how much we've missed out': The map that shows what the Tube would look like if it was in Greater Manchester
17.12.2023 - 09:11
/ manchestereveningnews.co.uk
Stretching from Handforth to Winter Hill and Holme Moss to Hindley, this is what the Tube would look like if it was in Greater Manchester. The fascinating map superimposes the London Underground's 11 lines and 270 of its stations onto our region.
And it only takes a quick glance to see just how much better off the capital is when it comes to public transport. If, for example, the Metrolink had the same amount of stops and covered a similar area, all 10 boroughs of Greater Manchester would be well-connected, stretching out to Cheshire, Lancashire and West Yorkshire.
Leigh, which currently doesn't even have a railway station at present, would have four stops, Middleton would have seven stations, and in and around Manchester city centre there would be stations at Strangeways, King Street, Whitworth Park and the universities, among others.
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The map was created by Ed Howe, a Mancunian and self-confessed 'transport and architecture nerd' currently working in London. "Like any northerner I'm very jealous of London's excellent transport system and wish Manchester had something similar," he said.
So he set about examining what an equivalent network would look like in his home city. He took a geographically accurate map of the tube and laid it over Greater Manchester on Google Maps, with Tottenham Court Road centred on St Peter's Square.
And, as the area covered by the tube is a similar size to Greater Manchester, the two dovetailed nicely. In this hypothetical scenario Heathrow Airport for instance, is just to the east of