Smooth rides promised for commuters on new guided busway
Passengers are being promised a smoother ride - as the controversial new guided busway from Leigh opens this weekend.
But not all commuters are keen on it, as other bus routes have come to a stop.
It’s the North West’s first guided busway, and will carry its first passengers on the 3rd of April, marking completion of a £68 million project to improve connections, journey times and the passenger experience between Leigh, Atherton, Tyldesley, Salford and Manchester.
It’s the flagship element of TfGM’s bus priority investment, a £122 million overall package to enable more people to enjoy faster, more punctual and more reliable bus services from a wider area across Greater Manchester, to, from and through the city centre.
The busway links to bus priority routes along the A580, with the final piece of the bus priority jigsaw currently being built to the south of Manchester city centre along Oxford Road. The city centre works are themselves part of a £1 billion investment to ‘future proof’ the transport network and support the regional economy.
Operated by First Manchester under the brand Vantage, a fleet of 20 new, bespoke, state-of-the-art buses will connect Leigh, Atherton and Manchester in as little as 50 minutes.
Customers travelling between Leigh and Manchester previously faced journeys timetabled at up to one hour and 20 minutes.
The high-specification, low-emission hybrid buses have Wi-Fi and USB charging points, plush seating, audio and visual stop announcements and climate control. The seven purpose-built stops along the busway will have real-time travel information display boards, CCTV, a public address system and covered cycling parking.
A specially surfaced shared path has been laid alongside the busway, meaning it can be used by walkers, cyclists and horse-riders, and three new free-to-use park and ride facilities have been built providing space for more than 400 cars in total.
Leigh MP Andy Burnham, at the unveiling today is hailing it as a great success already, but people we spoke to feel like their transport options are being limited.
The Busway services will start as early as 4am and run beyond midnight, with up to eight buses an hour between Tyldesley and Manchester.