Half of Greater Manchester bus services now under local control

Improvements made include more frequent, earlier and later services which will be targeted at the worst performing routes.

An all-night bus pilot is also set to launch later this year providing a 24/7 bus services for
‘people working in the night-time economy’ says Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM).

This will mean a total of 324 bus routes will be managed by TfGM as part of the Bee Network, summing 50% of the bus network.

“We’re taking on a network which hasn’t been working for customers at times, and making the changes we need to get performance to where it needs to be won’t happen overnight,” Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham said.

“We now have control over services and the ability to make changes – that’s a big difference, and customers can help too by giving us feedback so we can continue working to improve the system.”

This program will also see the introduction of the AnyBus + Tram ticket, offering savings of up to 20%, and a new bus tracking app to enable passengers to better time and make arrangements to their journey.

“Next month is the beginning of a journey of continuous improvement and that will be the core focus for Transport for Greater Manchester and our new bus operators over the coming months,” said Vernon Everitt, Greater Manchester Transport Commissioner

“It’s important people have a safe and cost-effective way of getting to and from work when they need it. Greater Manchester is a 24 hour city and should have a public transport system to match that.”

The latest data shows Bee Network bus services are more reliable than before bus franchising and are outperforming previous services. Between 4 and 10 of February, 71.0% of Bee Network buses were on time, compared to 64.18% on commercial services and 62.35%of the same period last year prior to franchising according to Transport of Greater Manchester

The bus tracking app will be live by 24 March and a full list of bus service improvements available to view now