ALL CHANGE FOR 33 BUS ROUTES
11 SERVICES FACING AXE AND 22 SET TO BE REDUCED
MORE than 30 bus routes are set to be cut or curtailed next month as the axe falls on the network yet again.
Routes spanning north and south Manchester and taking in areas ranging from Bury, Ashton and Droylsden to Gorton, Levenshulme, Chorlton and Sale are set to be hit by the changes.
Passengers facing changes to their services include those travelling to North Manchester General and Manchester Infirmary.
Eleven services will be axed and the rest reduced in either frequency or route length.
Other services will be boosted or rerouted, but many of these are to patch up the gaps left by cuts.
Many of the proposals - to be discussed at a transport meeting today - have been made by operators, while there are also reductions to services subsidised by Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM).
The 168 Stagecoach service from Ashton to Chorlton is among routes facing the chop.
Part of a growing trend, the bus network in Greater Manchester has shrunk by 8 million miles in just four years.
Under the current system, the majority of Greater Manchester’s bus services are run by commercial operators who are free to decide routes, timetables and set fare levels.
TfGM has no say in how these services are run and is not responsible for planning and coordinating the bus network.
It financially supports around 20 per cent of Greater Manchester’s bus services, which run at times of the day and in areas where there is a social need.
A spokesman for travel watchdog Transport Focus said changes to the bus service impacted ‘hugely’ on the daily lives of many people, adding: “Many of whom may have limited access to other transport.
“Transport Focus expects bus operators and TfGM to consult with passengers and communities to fully inform the tough decisions that need to be made. The provision of good quality information is needed so residents are aware of how they can still travel to places of work, education, healthcare and leisure.”
Pascale Robinson, from the Better Buses for Greater Manchester campaign, described the cuts as ‘another hit to passengers’ - and argued it supported the case for bus reform.
She added: “In our current deregulated bus network, bus companies are cherry picking only the most profitable routes and leaving so many of us with ever worsening services, while still paying out £10.4 million yearly to their shareholders in the north west.
“We need to regulate our buses in Greater Manchester, to allow profits from busy routes to pay for every community to have buses that we need, like the 168.”
However, Stagecoach insist reform would not improve services. A spokesman said: “There is a lot of misinformation shared with people in Greater Manchester that suggests under a franchised system they will get a tailored bus service that meets every individual need and this simply isn’t the case.
“Bus services need to be sustainable regardless of what system they are operated under.
“As well as the changes that are made by commercial operators, Greater Manchester has also seen a large number of funded bus services, that were not commercially viable, cut by the local authorities.
“Should franchising go ahead the local authority will still have to make exactly the same decisions about services that are not covering their costs.”
A First Bus spokesman said they were making ‘minor changes’ to their timetables from January 27 to ‘assist with improving punctuality of some services and to take into account some minor route changes.
He added: “In particular we are making improvements to the 53 service timetable, the 415 service has a change of route to avoid a low bridge and the 41 service is being revised to reinstate a cross city link connecting the MRI, Manchester University and North Manchester General Hospital.”
A Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) spokeswoman said the majority of services were run by operators and they had no say in routes, timetables, fares, or when a service was withdrawn.
She added: “We will be working with the operators to try and find solutions that minimise the impact of these service changes on local communities.”
Options on the table for bus reform – one element of a major plan for the future of transport in Greater Manchester – include franchising or partnership.
Franchising would transfer to local authorities decision-making power over routes, frequencies, standardised fares and quality of service.
An alternative partnership model, favoured by operators like Stagecoach and First, would leave bus firms with more power over factors including pricing.
But operators are battling against franchising.