Going underground: The Picc-Vicc Line and the future we never got

What went wrong with Manchester's underground metro system?

Dear Millers — let’s delve underground. Or, let’s delve into the recent past, when the civic leaders of this city had a plan to delve underground. In the early 1970s, Manchester came very close to building an underground metro system. The plan was ready to go: platforms at Victoria were closed for the works and a space was built into the foundations of the Arndale M&S to accommodate the trains. The idea built on a long history of schemes for underground transport in the city, including a plan to reroute the Irwell and convert the riverbed into a tram thoroughfare. 

The plan that nearly got built was called the Picc-Vicc Line and ever since he moved to Manchester, our data reporter James Gilmour has been wondering: why didn’t it happen? He explores that question in today’s fascinating story. 

Before that, we get you up to speed on a rather more contemporary transport question — the future of Andy Burnham’s Clean Air Zone — and below the main story we have a great To Do list for your weekend (members-only). As always, this edition is a members-only affair except for this little bit at the top. If you’re not a member yet and you would like to read today’s piece — and all of our members-only journalism — please do join up now using the button below. On Tuesday we published a fantastic review of the Royal Exchange’s Brief Encounter and last week we examined the death of a man who was initially reported as being homeless. 

🎁 Hunting for a thoughtful, local, sustainable gift for a Mancunian friend? Look no further! For a limited period we’re offering 25% off gift subscriptions so you can give the gift of quality local journalism for just £52.50 a year. It will give someone a year of enjoyment with no planet-destroying plastic wrapping or need to fight through the Trafford Centre crowds. Just click the link below before the offer runs out.

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Your Mill briefing

💨 Yesterday, the Greater Manchester Combined Authority made the case for improving air quality without charging residents or businesses. The proposal comes over a year after the original Clean Air Zone plan — which would have meant certain commercial vehicles being charged for driving in Greater Manchester, in a bid to reduce air pollution — was paused due to public opposition. The GMCA now says that its non-charging alternative, which would reduce air pollution by investing £86.7m in the Bee Network, upgrading taxis to emit less pollutants and better managing traffic in the city centre, will bring air quality within the legal limits stipulated by the government. At a press conference, Andy Burnham said this alternative proposal would mean “we can improve air quality faster than if we introduced a Clean Air Zone, and without causing hardship to our residents or businesses.”

Is this wishful thinking by a mayor keen to dodge a massive political headache? One source at the GMCA is sceptical. “I think it's very fanciful to suggest what he's [Burnham’s] proposing will have the desired effect especially considering evidence from other UK cities shows that charging has been highly effective elsewhere”. Plus, the GMCA’s modelling hasn’t been released yet. “We’re sort of taking their word for it,” says Sarah Rowe, the Greater Manchester campaigner for Clean Cities Campaign. She told The Mill that yesterday’s announcement was met with disappointment: “It is a bit underwhelming, it doesn’t match the scale of the problem.” The buses and taxis addressed in today’s statement are “a tiny proportion of the vehicles on the road”, Rowe says. “There has to be some kind of disincentive for regular cars.”

🧪 Speaking of the government, it’s setting up a second headquarters for the Department of Science, Innovation and Technology in Salford. It’s part of the government’s plan to move more civil servants out of London, both to decentralise its operations and boost the economy across the UK. The new office will open in 2027.

🌨 During the weekend’s heavy storms, customers at Ramona, a restaurant and bar on Swan Street, were struck by debris that was blown off a nearby construction site. It pierced the roof of the bar’s outdoor tipi, with one customer suffering head injuries and others being carried out on stretchers.

🏡 Manchester City Council has set out its strategy to tackle homelessness between 2024 and 2027. Its four priorities are doing more to prevent homelessness in the first place, cutting rough sleeping numbers, providing more affordable accommodation and “supporting better lives”. 

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Going underground: The Picc-Vicc Line and the future we never got

By James Gilmour

When I told my friends I was writing an article on the failed dream of a Manchester Underground line, the idea was met with faint bemusement. Even for a city not known for retiring modesty, the concept felt extravagant. Excessive. An Underground? For us?

It’s true. In the early 1970s, Manchester came tantalisingly close to securing our own underground metro system. Had things turned out only slightly differently, we would have joined Lyon, Glasgow, Rotterdam — or, further afield, Kharkiv, Samara, even Newcastle — in the Underground club for mid-size cities. The Picc-Vicc Line would have represented our own version of the Elizabeth line, 35 years ahead of the London project. 

But unlike the Elizabeth line, the Picc-Vicc was never a priority for the UK government, and the project was cancelled just before construction was due to start. I set out to find out why.