The ‘big’ bus moment we’ve waited four decades for is here

It’s the ‘big’ moment which some in Greater Manchester waited four decades for.

From this morning, yellow-liveried Bee Network buses will become familiar to every part of Greater Manchester.

That’s because Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) took control of services in the southern half of the city-region overnight.

In doing so, TfGM has now completed its third and final phase of bus ‘franchising’, the culmination of a process which began in Wigan, Bolton, and parts of Bury and Salford in September 2023.

Six months later, Rochdale, Oldham, north Manchester, and the rest of Bury followed suit.

Crucially, the overnight switch means every Greater Manchester bus service is now under public control for the first time since 1986. 

“This is a big moment for us. It’s a journey the city-region has been on as long as I’ve been around,” the mayor said.

“It’s a huge achievement for us all.

“I think it’s the biggest change to buses this country has seen in a long, long time.”

Franchising has been Mr Burnham’s flagship policy since becoming mayor in 2017, taking nearly eight years to come to fruition.

He hopes this will be the key reform which creates a huge shift in the way Mancunians move around - with the promise for those who ditch the car less being a more reliable, cheaper, and easier-to-access public transport network.

Mr Burnham added at a press conference in December: “The message to the public is please use these new low-fare options we are putting forward for you… if you make a commitment to shift from your car to the Bee Network in 2025, you can save a huge amount of money.”

However, work to improve Greater Manchester’s transport network so that it rivals London’s is ongoing.

A new ‘tap-in tap-out’ ticket system launches in March, covering trams and buses so passengers can swap between each easily and always pay the lowest fare.

Moreover, the mayor has pledged to bring eight commuter railway lines into public control by 2028, with some being done by next year.

Like buses, those services will be yellow liveried, and included in the tap-in tap-out system launching in March.

Before that, however, the mayor has warned there ‘will be challenges in the early days’, referencing teething problems seen in the first two phases over the last two years.

However, it’s clear now Greater Manchester has completed a bumpy journey to reach a new destination - one where public transport is in your hands.

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