Last chance to have say on bus franchise consultation

People and organisations across Greater Manchester and beyond have just a few hours left to have their say in a consultation on the future of the city-region's buses, before the deadline of midnight tonight (Friday 29 January).

Thousands of people have already engaged with the consultation, which is being carried out by Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) to gather views on the impact of Covid-19 on its proposals for the future of the city-region's buses.

Three in four public transport journeys made in Greater Manchester before and during the Covid-19 pandemic are by bus and they continue to be a critical link to jobs and essential services; especially for some of Greater Manchester’s poorest and most vulnerable communities and those without a car.  

Currently in Greater Manchester buses are run by commercial bus companies who decide the routes, timetables, tickets and standards. 

Between October 2019 and January 2020, GMCA held a consultation on a proposed franchising scheme for the city-region’s buses. Under franchising, bus services would be brought under local control. GMCA would coordinate and invest in the bus network based on the services passengers need. The bus operators would be contracted by GMCA to run the services. 

Over 8,500 individuals and organisations gave their views in the previous consultation, with four out of five respondents, who answered the relevant question, supporting the proposed franchising scheme.

In June 2020, GMCA received the results of the consultation but decided, before a final decision could be made that the impact of Covid-19 on the bus market and the proposed franchising scheme should be considered.

Sir Richard Leese, Deputy Mayor of Greater Manchester Combined Authority, said: “It doesn’t matter if you are a regular bus user or not, young or old, this is an issue that affects all of us. So I urge everyone – from Rochdale and Bolton to Stockport, Wigan to Tameside – to take part and ensure their voices are heard.”

Under franchising, GMCA would be responsible for the bus network and that means it would have more of the financial responsibility and the risks. Depending on the impacts of Covid-19, GMCA might have to make difficult choices about the bus network in the future to manage these financial risks - such as providing further funding or making reductions to the network.  

Following the consultation the responses will be independently analysed and reported to GMCA, who will consider the responses alongside the outcome of the previous consultation.

The outcome of both consultations will then be considered as part of the final decision by the Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, on whether to implement the proposed franchising scheme.  

Find out more at www.gmconsult.org or call 0161 244 1100. Hard copies of the consultation document are available on request.

Have your say by 12 midnight on Friday 29 January

www.gmconsult.org or by emailing gmbusconsultation@ipsos-mori.com