Barbara has written to Andy Burnham, Mayor of Greater Manchester, to express her support for the re-regulation of buses in Greater Manchester. 

Barbara says: 

“Each week I receive complaints from constituents about bus services in Worsley & Eccles South. These are complaints are about buses being late, buses that are not accessible and bus services that are being cut. For example, the 100 bus in Eccles has been re-routed away from Peel Green causing hundreds of people travel difficulties, many of them are older people, and the 34 and X34 in Worsley has been routed away from Worsley Road meaning there is no longer a direct bus link from Worsley Road to central Manchester.  

When I have raised the issue of bus services being cut I have been told by Transport for Greater Manchester that these are “commercial decisions” taken by the bus companies themselves. 

People in Worsley & Eccles South are paying the price of private bus companies focusing on profit instead of providing a meaningful service to bus users. Regulation of the buses would remove the profit incentive from operations so that we can have a greater focus on the social and economic purpose of bus services, meaning buses can better cater for the social or business needs of an area. It could also provide benefits such as integrated ticketing for all local transport and affordable fares to encourage greater usage. 

Constituents in Worsley & Eccles South deserve a bus service that is affordable, reliable, accessible and green. Devolution has given the Mayor powers to introduce a London-style regulated bus service in Greater Manchester. I have now written to Andy Burnham, Mayor of Greater Manchester, to express my support for the regulation of buses across Greater Manchester.”