Ashton to Eccles via Media City UK 

That was superb to watch. As a Tram driver you really have to have your wits about you, almost like a train and a car driver together, constantly on the look out on the road sections for wobbly cyclists, pedestrians distracted by their phones and slow moving traffic. Utmost respect to them, especially when it's dark come winter etc.

Probably THE best hour I've spent on youtube. A fascinating journey full of facts, info and explaining how our fabulous metro link works and the skills of its drivers. Thank you Don. I appreciate it.

Don, I'm always glad to see a new video from you and never disappointed. Your train rides are a great escape from the everyday nonsense and drama of America. Thank you! mp

subtitles are brilliant for me. i am deaf and now I fully understood what the signals mean. Top quality video. I wish more trams in Britain and our government are not interested in trams, yet they spend billions on HS2.

Having time to adsorb the peripheral views gives a great insight into the architectural history (both ancient and modern) of the area. Probably one of your best educational videos Don.

Don, thank you for another look at the Manchester Metro system. The info about the city docks was very informative as to how this inland city was able to have a deep water port for many years and is still a water destination for pleasure travelers. Am looking forward to the day when circumstances will again allow you to publish videos from your own runs on TPE.

17:09 As someone who lives in that area, it's nice to hear such praise. Been here since before this network was built, it's been quite nice to see how well it turned out.

Rode that line a few times while on holiday in Manchester and the others. It wasn't till a while later did I realise why the platforms were so high compare to the likes of Edinburgh. Because it's been built on mostly old heavy rail routes. Smashing video.

This is really well thought out and edited. I like the way you include maps showing the line and location, and also the occasional external shots cut in, plus the useful commentary underneath where there is something of interest. Love it.

Brilliant! Thank you for sharing. MetroLink is by far my favourite mean of transport around Manchester. Thank you for your service!

Thank you so much! I'll be watching this one numerous times...as I have done with all the rest of the fabulous videos you post.

Fantastic video, as usual! Your channel has given me so many hours of relaxation and enjoyment of the British countryside. Thank you for that!

Excellent film, loved all the interesting information popping up on screen, gives a great insight into the cityscape , well done. 👏

Thanks for another excellent video. Your ‘extra features’ are always much appreciated. 🐨🇦🇺

👍 Great video as always ! Detailed and relevant comments and explanations. Really very nice work ! Thanks for us. 👏

Many thanks Don for another very interesting video, and for the extras, the glimpses into other parts of Manchester, it's certainly changed since I was last there, but it was a few years ago, but well done.

Thanks Don another great video. Always amazes me pedestrians ,car drivers, see a tram coming & don't think of the consequences. A tram hits you there is only one outcome. Thank you.

Thank you, Don, for posting this excellent video; and for the informative written commentary too. And thanks to your colleagues in Metrolink for the camera-work. I've known Manchester well for many years, dating back to the late 1960s, and well remember the dereliction of the docks area. What a difference today! And the tram has made a huge contribution to that positive change.

I'm from New York and though I worked for the New York Metropolitan Transit Authority. We unfortunately don't have light rail or trams here. It was fun watching your video and the information was most informative. I've never really seen what Manchester looks like until now. Though I did actually visit London and rode their buses and Underground.

I thoroughly enjoyed coming along for the ride. Thanks.

It's neat you mention Manchester Liners Dock 9 being used for their service to Montreal. I'm from Montreal and my parents emigrated to Canada on Manchester Liners in 1954. They must have left from this dock.

Thanks Don and Metro link for filming these interesting and insightful videos on how a light railway operates. I enjoy watching all of your videos reading the rolling captions for the historical and the knowledge you share on how a heavy and light railway operates. Looking forward to more of your videos from the loco shed of Excellence !!!

Great video Don. Thanks to all concerned. I have a special interest in the ruute. I was born in a nursing home that stood close to where the line crosses Carruthers Street and for twenty odd years worked in the area covered by this route.

Really interesting video! I live in Los Angeles, where our light rail system is called Metro Rail, and our trains also sport yellow on both ends. Great mix of street running and grade separation! Interestingly enough, Metrolink is the name of our heavy rail regional commuter service, which uses diesel locos with bilevel coaches in push pull configurations. Cheers from the US!

Thank you, Don (and Rob). I rode to Media City a few years ago while the Trafford Park line was still under construction; it's interesting to see the changes. Another excellent video!

Don, as with your previous postings, a fascinating and very informatively captioned video. Thank you. I've not visited Manchester since the introduction of Metrolink - though for a long while I've promised myself a visit to the Velodrome, for which I'd obviously use the tram to Velopark, but I must admit to a love/hate relationship with this form of transport. I've used the Croydon Tramlink quite regularly, and in my wife's native Warsaw, as in other Polish cities, the tram network is first class, but conversely, I still bear vestigial scars from an "over the handlebars" encounter with the tramlines of Ghent during one of my Polhill club cycle racing trips to Belgium, which earned me a visit to the Universiteit Ziekenhuis for X-Rays and stitches. One of my first childhood memories which must have been before 1951, is of being with my Mum on a London tram on route 46 between Woolwich and Lee Green as it made the tight turn by Eltham Church, and being alarmed to tears by the (to my delicate young ears) deafening sound of the wheels grinding on the rails, before it began its dive down Eltham Hill.

Another interesting and entertaining video Don - Thank you. Looking at the state of some of the roads, it's a fair bet that it will be a lot smoother ride on the tram.

I live on this line and it's really cool to see it from the drivers POV.

Another great video! Really enjoyed this tram ride!

Excellent video, thanks. I had no idea what Manchester was like before this.

My 1st time here and me not knowing Anything about where this is, I absolutely LOVED it... Already a huge fan...

I love to see trams, we should have them everywhere. Watching the cab rides in Japan, their older lines become the railway in places.

Another excellent video, thank you and keep up the good work. 👍

Probably the best tram journey I have watched on RU-vid. Very informative, but not too informative. You got the balance just right with your written commentary. You got yourself a new subscriber 🙌

Fantastic content!

That was a brilliant video, you certainly would need nerves of steel.Hope you and the family are well Don.Kind regards

Many thank Don for another enjoyable journey.🚊

Bravo! Great driver's eye view; but the editing in of pictures and video took great skill. Thank you!

Brilliant and so informative (as always Don) ❤️🙏😊

Had to giggle at 16:55. I drove lorries down there over the past years, and always smiled at Alan J Bradley, Funeral Directors. Given, of course, that Alan Bradley on Corrie was famously killed by a tram albeit in Blackpool!

Another excellent production

G'day ExPat Mancunian , I really enjoyed this, was back there in 2018,stayed a week ,it was great seeing my old stomping ground again, MUFC blew me away ,wow what a change, sad to see what had happened to Piccadilly gardens ,any way thanks mate!

Thanks for this Don 👍 and it's an Eccles cake for me.

I just came across this video via RU-vid Algorithms recommendations and enjoyed it (and the Comments Section). You are one of the few RU-vidrs who answer people's queries and comments, which must be a huge task I imagine. Well done! The clean windscreen and bright focus was much appreciated, as was the editing and additional information via subtitles. Cheers from Chiang Mai, which probably ought to have had trams for the past 100 years, but the Elephants 🐘 most likely would've gone on strike, and where would it all end? A very messy situation cleverly avoided.

fantastic as always, thankyou!!

You see NOW I want an Eccles cake AND a Chorley cake...... thanks Don

This brings back some memories, ain’t done this journey in a while

Another great video, thank you.

Thanks Don very interesting to see and learn a wee bit about Manchester. A long time ago I was in Manchester as the tram system was starting to be built to go to a model railway show at a large venue, sorry forgotten the name of it.

excellent quality video and, as always, very informative (it’s a cheap way to travel to the UK). Keep’em coming!

Very nice to see how it is done in the UK, here it is Manchester! My usual sources for tram videos have been from: Holland - Den Haag, Poland - Warzaw and Krakow, Melbourne and Pert - Australia, Germany - Berlin +?(don't remember) Stuttgart - Frankfurt, and a very steep one in Lisbon - Portugal. The raised platforms in Manchester: I only remember seeing them in Frankfurt as well. Most of the trams I have seen were low-boarding, especially those that also drove on city streets and had plenty of stops there. It's all out to the layout of the city I guess. If possible can we please have some more of this, and also from other cities as well?! Edit: this just popped up in my recommendations: East Didsbury to Rochdale Town Centre. Will be watching that now!

Another marvellous programme . Tram drivers are certainly at the mercy of doughnut brain public . I like the signaling but you've got to be plugged in to drive one . 750 DC is the same current as third rail so there's some gradient climbing power 👍🇬🇧

great vid mate cheers ,. have a fantastic christmas

Great video, really interesting 👍

Great video Don, Downtown Manchester is unrecognizable from when I was last there in the late 80s.

Piccadilly is some rabbit warren!!! Another fantastic ride Don

Brilliant Don. Really enjoyed that one.

Wow, deansgate looks a lot better now! The fresh plants and modern look

Those roads look rougher than I remember, not having been in that area for about 15 years (pre-tram!). - - Eccles or Chorley cakes - Eccles tend to be smaller in diameter, but fatter, whilst Chorleys are larger diameter but flatter. Both colloquially known as 'flies graveyards'.

As a long time Goons fan it just makes me happy to know that there is a place called Eccles :-). The guy on the bike with the hi-vis ninja costume was keeping up with the tram pretty well on that last stretch. Thanks Don.

I just love trams they peace ful to travel. 👍🏻

Nice run, interesting to see two trams connected, not seen that before, both Nottingham and Sheffield tram systems are also in mph too :)

Amazing as usual Don, those road surfaces seem to be deteriorating around the tramlines as you get further towards Eccles. Is it's Metrolink or Manchester council that has responsibility for road maintenance?

As a (now long retired) tram driver I enjoyed this video, although I do find the whistle/hooter a little irritating. Our Bombardier trams had/have a much more standard bell (and horn). I was one of a small delegation from our local ASLEF branch who were invited to visit (and ride on) this system and we were made very welcome by our Manchester ASLEF branch colleagues and hosts. At the time we were a fledgling branch, struggling to gain recognition from a company chairman/CEO who vowed we would never succeed as long as he was in charge. Meanwhile ASLEF was already quite well established in Manchester and had been for some time. Since our visit some seventeen or eighteen years ago there have been some amazing changes around Manchester and, although memory fades with age, certain parts obviously still look familiar, especially the exit from Piccadilly. As a member of the RMS of (a fully recognised) ASLEF Croydon TLR No.1, I'd like to thank all those drivers at Manchester who made us so welcome to their area and place of work all those years ago.

Excellent video!

First class Don. East Manchester is totally changed (for the better) from when I knew it. The dive under Great Ancoats Street made me wonder whether the ghost of Bernard Manning might appear!

When on our narrow boat holiday doing the Cheshire ring we passed through Manchester on the bridgewater canal and moored in one of the mooring docks off the castlefield basin and had dinner in one of the pubs in that area. We could see and hear the railway and tram flyovers from where we were moored, I have never been on one of these modern trams as we live in Enfield - north London, and the tram network is in Croydon - south London, other side of the river Thames 😕

Amazing video as always, i love your content... Ashton also has a Beautiful Bus interchange ( Ashton interchange)... Facts: Ashton is a major hub for Stagecoach Manchester. It also serves First Bus. I am looking forward to see more of the Metrolink. Sending greetings from Bolton.

Piccadilly at 2.40 in the afternoon!!! Wow!

Hi Don, It would be interesting to see a re-run of this post-Covid . Even more difficult for the driver I would imagine with additional traffic, crowds - and idiots!

I was born and lived in Manchester for 37 years before moving to North Yorkshire for work. I don't recognise it anymore. Great video though.

Good video with all those natural noises none of that awful back ground music.

Manchester is much better than when I visited 20 years ago.

Another lovely video Don, I’m really enjoying this. Unfortunately it is interrupted by a lot more advertisement compared to your other video’s (every 5 minutes) but maybe it’s time for me to upgrade my RU-vid account. Anyway, keep up the good work!

Looks like veryone's using the facebook page, instead of leaving comments here. The YT algorithm won't like that and I seldom use facebook, so I hope you don't mind me sticking to the comments section Don. As I've got the place to myself, might as well ask a quick question: what was the story with the queue of trams on the central section? Thanks for another interesting journey, rather different to mainline running.😁 Cheers for now, Dougie.

Great videos! Would love to see the Bury line :)

Once, travelling on the old, 1950's trams, I saw two notices - one said "Do not spit" and the other said "Use the ship canal".

Great video, really enjoyed watching it. Do you know what caused the queue of trams at the birdcage? I suppose it only takes one incident to bring everything to a halt. Shame Manchester trams don't have the bell option which sounds more friendly, Croydon trams use the bell for most things and the horn only for the more serious things.

Good video about trams

Of note is the building in the background at Weaste with a clock tower. It used to be a bus garage for the Greater Manchester PTE.

Great facts in there as well!

Tram is definitely a viable mod of urban transport

A very interesting video Don. Some of the road surfaces are in appalling condition,

thank you very much. enjoyed it from east to west. absolutely disgusting amount of litter in certain sections, like ashton u lyme and the piccadilly approaches. wonder what the ultimate person responsible, GM Mayor Burnham, thinks and does about it. he could take part in our citizens litter picking days like many of us do already. media headlines are filled up with clean air zones etc, they are ok, but to start with we want our cities clean and safe and mayors must work in that direction. littering is an offence against the environment, against us all.

An excellent tour through Manchester city. The ride felt really relaxing, like, you know, you're actually riding the tram and experiencing everything yourself. Where to next? What about a ride on a freight train?

that was fab

Not quite your 125mph train but still very interesting Don. It looks like that part of this light rail ran over former heavy rail right of way.

Great video- Any idea what the class 60 was doing in Piccadilly station,.. plus why the long string of trams waiting on the 'bird cage'?!

Awesome video! Nice footage of the metro trams of Manchester in the UK! I would like to know when this was recorded?

Great to see the Etihad in the background home to my beloved Man City 👍

Nice

Don, great journey through the Mancunian highlights of my early life - and Salford in my wife's case. One thing to correct however - it is POMONA, not PAMONA.

Love these. Can you do one up the east lancs to Colne?

Another trip on Manchesters expensoline system.They could have completly replaced all the buses in Manchester for what it cost! Oh, by the way the stop is called Pomona, named after Pomona docks not that well known spelling mistake "Pamona."

I presume the tram signals (horizontal bar=stop, vertical bar=proceed) are deliberately chosen *not* to use the normal red/green because this could confuse road users. But how easy do tram drivers find it to see and decipher two signal states which are both white (like many other lights which are not signals) and which differ only in orientation? Looking at the videos, as we approach road/tram lights, I can see and distinguish road traffic lights by colour *long* before I can even *see* the tram signal which is alongside, let alone determine its aspect. How normal is it for a signal to be held at stop until a tram is very close, and only change to proceed after the tram has slowed? Is it to deliberately slow trams at road crossings or is it to minimise the time that road traffic is stopped?

Superb as usual, note that it is ‘Pomona’ not ‘Pamona’

Excellent video, thanks Don and Rob. But nothing scares me more than women with prams crossing in front of you and those intently glued to their mobiles looking as if they’re about to walk in front of you😱

Goooood

Hi Mr Coffey, I did enjoy seeing this video. Nice quality footage and narration text. However, I noticed that Pomona was spelled 'Pamona' on the map and in the information text. Is it possible to edit this, and re-upload? Otherwise the video is really excellent, but I just felt that I should point out this small niggle.

👍