Tap and go ‘momentous’, Burnham says

“It’s a momentous day for Greater Manchester,” according to Andy Burnham - but it’s all down to a ‘hidden’ change you might ‘not want to know about’.

Speaking today (Monday), the mayor said a major change to the way Bee Network tickets work means Greater Mancunians ‘now have an integrated public transport system, the kind this city deserves’.

Unlike previous developments of the Bee Network, when yellow buses appeared in new parts of the city overnight, this update is ‘hidden’ in plain sight, as ‘tap-and-go’ ticketing was introduced to buses and  trams on Sunday.

“It went as well as we could have hoped,” Mr Burnham said in Exchange Square. 

“We obviously have had to do a lot behind the scenes that people maybe won’t want to know all the details about, but we had to move the trams off their system onto a new one and then bring all the buses onto it. 

“Complicated, but that wiring is hidden to the public.

"They just turned up and have started using the new system. 

“And while there are a few questions, I’m really pleased that the public were aware of the change and a lot of people said they’ve started to use the Bee network because of how easy it’s getting, the low fares - we’re very pleased this morning.”

Despite the volume of work required, passengers are unlikely to spot much difference, at first - tapping on and off trams has been possible since July 2019 - and tapping on a bus is similar to buying a paper ticket with a card.

Eventually, TfGM bosses expect the system to drive up passenger numbers, but this may present a problem to the mayor.

Metrolink had its busiest ever month in November, and residents frequently complain of difficulty boarding trams and buses on busy routes.

It’s one reason why the mayor added he ‘would be the first to acknowledge that the Bee Network isn’t yet where we fully want it to be’. 

“There’s lots of improvements that still are needed,” he went on.

“On the V1 this morning people were saying to me, ‘yeah, it’s packed at times, you need more services’.

“With the trams, I know at the Etihad and Old Trafford on match days particularly, people say it’s not good enough and they need more capacity, more double trams.

"I hear that. 

“We’ve got to get on and order those trams.

"We’ve got growth in our city, population is growing, the economy is growing. 

“When you’ve got growth, you’ve got to get ahead of the growth and make sure the capacity is built out and it’s a big message that I’m taking into the [government] spending review that’s coming.”

Mr Burnham said tap and go’s introduction represented the end of phase one of implementing the Bee Network.

The next phase is completing the already-announced roll-out of Bee Network trains to 99 commuter railways stations in the city, and a third phase could include ‘underground capability’ for rail.

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