Bee Network marks milestone with record numbers of people travelling on buses
Since its launch one year ago today, more than 58 million journeys have been made on the Bee Network
Last updated 24th Sep 2024
More than 58 million journeys have been made on the Bee Network since its launch in Bolton, Wigan and parts of Salford and Bury one year ago today.
The number of people travelling has increased by 5%, equating to nearly seven million more journeys.
Transport for Greater Manchester said: "Better, more affordable public transport is key to unlocking Greater Manchester’s potential and growing the economy, by connecting people with education, jobs and opportunity, unlocking development and regeneration, enabling housing growth, supporting social inclusion and active and healthy lifestyles.
"Buses are the cornerstone of the Bee Network – accounting for around 75% of all public transport trips – and bus franchising plays a key role in delivering the vision for a fully integrated public and active travel network, linking with Metrolink and walking, cycling and wheeling routes."
Some of the key benefits of the Bee Network according to TFGM since its launch include:
- More money from fares: revenues from buses in the first phase of the Bee Network exceeded £20m – £3m higher than budgeted (between 24/9/23 and 31/3/24). Franchising is also costing a third less per km than services that were being tendered before franchising began.
- More buses turning up on time: buses in the first areas to come under local control are consistently more reliable than before franchising, with services in Tranche 1 areas now consistently above the target of 80% punctuality. Between June and August 2024, punctuality of Tranche 1 services was 86.5% compared to 70.5% for the equivalent pre-franchising period.
- New buses and better standards: 540 buses in the Bee Network are less than a year old, including 100 electric buses. The average age of buses in Bolton, Wigan and parts of Salford and Bury is 4.7 years, compared with an average age of 8.6 for the Greater Manchester bus fleet in 2018. A total of 10% of buses are now electric – up from less than 1% before franchising – and this number will increase to 15% from January.
- Trial of night bus services: Connecting Manchester with Leigh and Bolton via Salford, the V1 and 36 will now run at least every hour in each direction, 24/7, t support people enjoying and working in the night-time economy. The year-long trial provides around-the-clock connectivity for around 135,000 people living within a five-minute walk from the two routes.
- 58,590,537 passenger journeys have been made on the Bee Network (between 24/9/23 and 14/9/24) – and record-breaking patronage figures set on two consecutive days in September, with 305,000 journeys recorded on a single day (5th September).
- Satisfaction with fares has jumped from 63% in 2022 to a record high of 82% (based on TfGM fares survey and since the inception of the survey in 2016)
- Improved customer experience including the Bee Network app**, which enables users to buy cheaper combined bus and tram tickets, plan their journeys, track all buses across Greater Manchester, access live departure times and see where their nearest bus or tram stop was, and leave feedback via Rate My Journey.
- The introduction of almost 70 new TravelSafe Support and Enforcement Officers across the franchised network to provide a reassuring, visible presence for the travelling public.
Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham said: “One year ago today we made history as the first area to start to bring our buses back under local control for the first time in nearly 40 years.
“I am really pleased at the progress we have made, with services in Bolton, Wigan and parts of Salford and Bury now significantly more reliable than before and record numbers of passengers using the Bee Network.
“The age and standard of our buses is better than it was, we have more staff on the network, we’re keeping fares low and have launched a night bus pilot.
“I am certain our pioneering Bee Network will continue to go from strength to strength. It is delivering jobs for people here and across the UK – and it’s no surprise that others are looking to follow in our footsteps and that local control of buses is now a major national policy.”
Louise Haigh, Secretary of State for Transport, added: “Greater Manchester has been a pioneer in the effort to deliver better buses. Just one year on from its launch, the Bee Network has become a model for reliable, affordable and integrated public transport services.
“That’s why I made sure my very first official visit as Transport Secretary was to see the brilliant Bee Network in action.
“This Government is committed to ensuring these same successes are replicated across the country, by breaking down barriers to delivering better buses and giving local leaders the tools they need to deliver for their communities.”
Bringing buses under local control through the Bee Network has made it possible to make improvements to the network that would not have happened under the old deregulated system, run by commercial operators.
This has seen reliability driven up through timetable changes and adding additional buses where performance had not previously been good enough.
In April, an extra 20 buses were introduced to the Tranche 1 area to help improve punctuality and reliability, while also providing extra capacity. These changes led to patronage increasing across 34 different services, three quarters of which saw patronage rise by 10% or more.
This is a continual process and similar changes in the Tranche 2 areas are being considered, with plans to introduce them in October, January and March next year.
Through the Network Review process, TfGM will continue to work with local authorities and stakeholders to ensure existing services meet the needs of customers, and make changes where required.
The recently launched trial of night buses is also supporting economic growth in Greater Manchester by providing a lifeline for people and enjoying and working within the region’s night-time industries. The trial also marks the first step towards realising the ambition to have a network of night bus services across Greater Manchester.
Chris Fletcher, Policy Director at Greater Manchester Chamber of Commerce said: “It is truly remarkable the impact that the Bee Network has had in the last 12 months and shows the benefits of having genuine local control over what is still the main form of public transport in the country.”
“For businesses, having an effective, co-ordinated and cost effective public transport network is critical to not only let their current employees get to work but it allows them to look to a wider catchment area for recruiting new staff. Likewise for people looking to access job-critical training or new job opportunities, more people now have more access to work and training options than ever before which will help Greater Manchester’s growth ambitions.”
“The recent introduction of the night services has created a high degree of interest from a number of businesses, reliant on shift workers and having full control means that initiatives like this can be put in place to create a truly unique service that is right for GM’s business and residents.”
Ensuring the safety of passengers on Greater Manchester's public transport system continues to be of vital importance as the Bee Network continues to grow, with 68 new TravelSafe Support and Enforcement Officers on the network – including new night bus services – and a further 45 to follow in January.
Buses in Oldham, Rochdale and parts of Bury, Salford and north Manchester joined the Bee Network on 24 March, representing around half of all buses in the city region, or 328 bus routes (188 routes in phase one and 140 routes in phase two). The remaining 253 bus services will come under local control on 5 January.