METROLINK services on the Bury-Manchester line were suspended early on Tuesday after vandalism caused the whole system to virtually shut down.
Vital trackside fibre-optic cables near the Woodlands Road station were cut which resulted in the loss of communications.
This meant that information boards on stations along the line were blank and that Metrolink control staff were unable to use the public address systems to advise passengers.
Services running from Manchester to Bury, which are usually up and running at 5.50am, had to be cancelled and resumed more than an hour later.
A spokeswoman for Metrolink said: "During Monday night, vandals cut through fibre-optic cables. No services operated until 7am when back-up communication systems were used."
This was the latest in a series of vandalism attacks. In February, a major disruption to services was caused when thieves stole trackside components and damaged cables on a section of line between Radcliffe and Bury.
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