It serves the southern part of Manchester city centre and the University, and is on bus routes to the southern suburbs of the city.
Trains from this station go to Liverpool,Blackpool,Leeds,Sheffield and other towns across the North of England. Use of the station increased with the construction of the Windsor Link between Deansgate and Salford Crescent, linking the lines to the North and South of Manchester.
The original station had become dilapidated by the 1950s and was rebuilt in a distinctive style in concrete and wood with curves bringing to mind the Sydney Opera House