- Louise Haigh has visited Greater Manchester on her first official visit, vowing to back local leaders to deliver better buses
- under the government’s plan, local transport authorities across the country will have the power to take back control of buses
- the Transport Secretary will see first-hand how Greater Manchester’s Bee Network has increased reliability and ridership
Transport Secretary Louise Haigh will visit Greater Manchester today (11 July 2024) to launch the government’s bus revolution as she pledges to support every community to take back control of buses through franchising or public ownership.
He will meet Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham to discuss how the local Bee Network can be replicated across the country to provide better services, increase ridership and drive opportunities to underserved regions.
The Transport Secretary will pledge to create and save vital bus routes up and down the country and call time on a failed deregulation scheme that has seen services plummet. The plans will also end the postcode lottery in bus transport by ensuring the security of local networks across the country.
Launched in September 2023 as the first bus franchise in England outside of London, the integrated Bee Network has brought increased ridership to local people and improved reliability of local bus services. It has already seen ridership increase by 5% in the first area to be franchised, with sales following suit.
The Transport Minister will see first-hand how the successes of the Bee Network can be replicated across the country, improving services and devolving power to local people.
The Transport Secretary will also hear directly from the challenges facing Greater Manchester during its franchise.
Greater Manchester has endured 6 years of tragedy to ensure local control of bus services due to unnecessary barriers. The government’s plan will remove these barriers to deliver better buses faster.
Transport Minister Louise Haigh said:
Buses are the lifeblood of communities, but the system is broken.
All too often, passengers wait hours for buses that don’t arrive – and some have been cut off entirely.
The change starts now. This new government will give local leaders the tools they need to deliver better buses across the country.
Our plan will create and save vital bus routes by giving every community the power to take back control of their bus services through franchising or public ownership.
We can already see what the Bee Network is bringing to people across Greater Manchester – we will ensure every community can enjoy the same benefits.
The Bee Network also powers Manchester Metrolink. In May, it recorded its busiest month in its 32-year history with 4.1 million passengers using the iconic yellow trams, up from the previous record of 4 million before the pandemic in 2019.
Andy Burnham, Mayor of Greater Manchester, said:
Properly integrated public transport is key to unlocking growth and opportunity across our city region, improving the lives of our residents, supporting business and delivering greater value for money.
The numbers speak for themselves – our Bee Network has more passengers than ever before and better services for residents.
Greater Manchester has shown that our pioneering approach works and we look forward to working with the Government to put power back into the hands of local communities.
The bus plan is part of the new government’s ambition to develop a long-term national strategy for transport. This will ensure that infrastructure can be delivered efficiently and on time, while allowing local people to take back control of their buses, trams and trains.
Graham Vidler, Chief Executive Officer The Passenger Transport Association said:
The industry is fully behind the goals of growing the country’s vital bus network and improving the passenger experience.
We look forward to working hand-in-hand with the Government to introduce changes that will benefit travelers across the country and drive faster progress towards United Kingdomclimate goals.