In July 2022, Manchester welcomed the newest addition to its roster of urban parks. Owned by the National Trust, the Castlefield Viaduct is a Grade II-listed, 19th-century railway bridge that has been redevelopped into a new 330m-long sky park.
The project is part of a wider repurposing of brownfield and former industrial space in Manchester with several other projects promoting the city as a go-to place for innovative urban development in housing and green and open space. Under construction, in particular, is Victoria North, a new neighbourhood of 15,000 new homes across a 155-hectare site in the north of the city. This includes City River Park, a huge new “recreational corridor”, according to the proposals, along the River Irk.
For now, the National Trust is operating Castlefield Viaduct as a 12-month trial. Entry is free but ticketed and limited to 100 visitors per day on allocated one-hour slots each afternoon. Due to the extensive publicity campaign, high demand has led to the National Trust website crashing.
