Manchester was at the centre of a network of tramway systems that served the city and the neighbouring towns. This is one of two volumes in the series to cover the tramways of Manchester and focuses on the routes to the south of the city centre and the history of the Manchester system in the build-up to World War II. The tramways underwent considerable investment in the 1920s but= a change of manager led to the start of the conversion to bus and trolleybus operation as war approached.