Stockport Interchange

Stockport Interchange is one of the biggest single projects outside of London and a key part of Stockport's £1 billion town centre regeneration.

Our regeneration experts have delivered an interchange development that is a new gateway to the town and region, creating seamless connectivity for people using the West Coast Mainline and local transport services.

The heritage site also includes important new public realm space (above) with a new two acre park called ‘Viaduct Park’, named after the location. The park is the first of its kind in the UK and provides a green space for residents to enjoy, featuring play equipment, festoon lighting and an events pavilion that will help to connect neighbourhoods and communities. It also has cycle paths and a footbridge linking it with the town’s famous railway station.

The mixed-use development, which also includes a residential complex consisting of 196 homes, is a joint venture between Stockport Council, Transport for Greater Manchester and the Greater Manchester Combined Authority, in conjunction with development partner, CityRise.

The Interchange completion in 2024 heralds what is set to be Stockport’s biggest year yet with several major town centre schemes underway including the transformation of Weir Mill into modern apartments, and a new learning and discovery centre, Stockroom, which are both due for completion later this year.

Modern bus facility

It includes a modern, fully accessible and covered passenger concourse with seated waiting areas, where people can wait for one of 18 bus stands with the capacity for 164 departures an hour. The vision is that is provides quick and easy connectivity between south and north Manchester, which becomes a further spur for growth and inward investment.

Green, safe and welcoming

The Interchange has sustainability at its heart - opening up public transport and active travel options to people from across the area, improving air quality and reducing congestion.

It features a host of green technologies including a ‘blue-roof’ rainwater attenuation system and an array of photo voltaic panels. The scheme is the latest and largest new development being driven forward by the Stockport Mayoral Development Corporation (MDC), an innovative partnership that sets a new benchmark for town centre regeneration.

The new interchange features 18 bus stands which will allow for 164 departures an hour

The partnership brings together powers devolved to the Greater Manchester Mayor combined with strong local leadership from Stockport Council and the long-term commitment of the government’s housing agency, Homes England, to deliver an ambitious vision for the future of Stockport town centre.

Jobs gateway for local people

Through our Stockport Interchange project, we are equipping local people with skills to find work in the construction industry through hands-on training.

We have created a Building Lives Academy on-site that is providing qualifications including Health & Safety in Construction Level 1 certification and a CSCS card following an intensive four-week course.

The first to benefit are ten people from Stockport aged between 18-25 who are not in education, employment or training (NEET). Read more about the initiative here.

What people are saying:

Cllr Mark Hunter, Leader of Stockport Council:

“Today is a landmark day in the history of our town. Stockport has always been pioneering and ambitious, establishing itself as a leading centre for textiles during the Industrial Revolution and setting the standard for urban renewal with the ‘space age’ Merseyway shopping centre – a 1960s feat of engineering across the River Mersey.

“And our £1bn town centre regeneration programme – one of the largest nationally – is reinventing and spectacularly transforming the heart of our borough now and for the future.

“We have this week been named the best place to live in the North West by the Sunday Times and are already among the 12 best places to retire in the UK (Which?) and one of the 12 best places to buy your first home (The Times). However, we are committed to making Stockport a place of opportunity for all. A place everyone is proud to call home.

“The Interchange and Viaduct Park are the real heartbeat of Stockport’s £1billion transformation and this is only the start for our borough.”

Anthony Dillon, managing director of Willmott Dixon in the North:

“From the very beginning we’ve been determined to, not only deliver an interchange and residential development that this town can be proud of, but to change lives and create opportunities for the people of Stockport. Along the way, we’re proud to say that, alongside TfGM and Stockport Council to date, we’re created 151 new jobs, delivered more than 675 weeks of apprenticeship and training weeks, as well as 56 work placements.

“Alongside this, we’ve worked extensively with Stockport College, supporting local young people into employment, apprenticeships as well as higher technical roles through T-Level courses. Through a wide range of careers related sessions and programmes at Werneth School and Stockport School as well as Mayor Andy Burnham’s Work Place Safari initiative, we’ve raised awareness of construction careers with young people.