CAR USERS will be banned from one of Manchester's busiest roads to build a "green corridor" into the city.
A half-mile stretch of Oxford Road is to be shut to allow special lanes for new eco-buses, ferrying thousands of passengers from Parrs Wood to Piccadilly.
However, the plans will not be realised for five years and rely on the introduction of congestion charging.
Eventually, Oxford Road will be closed to general traffic from the Manchester Royal Infirmary to the Aquatics Centre. Emergency vehicles will be exempt.
Special bus lanes will be built, and the normal road space will be set aside for other vehicles on the remaining sections of the route.
Council Chief Executive Sir Howard Bernstein said: "We believe there is a strong case for the introduction of a rapid bus transit scheme providing a high quality, high-frequency metro-style service on Oxford Road."
Oxford Road is currently one of Manchester's key commuter routes and one of the busiest bus routes in Europe, with more than 100 buses per hour.
The City Council estimates over fifteen minutes will be cut from journeys from Didsbury.
The plan was at the heart of proposals to transform the Oxford Road area and attract new business. The area is to be beautified with lines of trees, lighting and public art.
Oxford Road station will also be transformed to act as a bus terminal.
The scheme depends on £3 billion from the Transport Innovation Fund.
Professor Alan Gilbert, Vice-Chancellor of The University of Manchester said: "What we are embarking on is one of the most ambitious and exciting development initiatives Manchester has seen in a decade."
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