A supervised trial to test whether bikes and non-standard cycles can be taken on trams has been launched.
Under the current rules Metrolink allows folded bikes in bags on trams, but standard bikes are not permitted.
Proposals for Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) to carry out a guided pilot were approved by the Bee Network Committee in January.
The guided pilot will take place with volunteers selected by TfGM on off-peak services, under test conditions. It will be supervised by the tram operator, Keolis Amey Metrolink (KAM).
It will also look at the carriage of adapted bikes used as mobility aids, scooters and a broader range of mobility scooters that are not currently permitted.
The pilot, which launched on Thursday 29 February, will run for four-to-six weeks on off-peak services on different lines, routes and stops across the Metrolink network, at different times of the day and days of the week.
During the guided pilot there will be no change to Metrolink’s Conditions of Carriage and bikes and non-standard cycles will not be allowed to be taken onto trams by members of the public. Only invited participants under supervision by KAM staff will be able to take their bikes on Metrolink trams.
Dame Sarah Storey, Active Travel Commissioner, said: “I would like to thank Transport for Greater Manchester for progressing with the bikes on trams trial and I am looking forward to observing the study myself in the coming weeks.
“Not only will researchers carry out their study on a range of Metrolink lines and services, they will also trial different types of cycles, including non-standard ones used as mobility aids.
“A follow up report on how it’s gone will be brought to the Bee Network Committee this summer and I will be interested to read their analysis and learn more about how volunteers and tram users have found the experience.”
