Andy Burnham says he want London-style bus system for Greater Manchester.

 

The deregulation of buses in 1986 didn't work. Public transport in London was never deregulated. Outside of London, bus passenger numbers have fallen, bus fares have rocketed, and there are fewer bus routes. 

In Greater Manchester, Stagecoach and First, dominate the bus system. Andy Burnham says he wants a London style bus system for Greater Manchester and he's capping bus fares at £2 in September. In London, a standard single bus fare is £1.65 and under the 'Hopper' scheme, you can transfer to other buses and trains for free for an unlimited number of times within one hour, of touching in for your first journey. A one-day bus only travel ticket costs £4.95. If you're 60 and live in Greater London, you qualify for a free bus pass, where you can travel free on buses, tubes, and other transport within Greater London. 

In Greater Manchester you now have to be 66 to qualify for a free bus pass when it used to be 60. On a Stagecoach bus in Greater Manchester, you can travel three stops at a distance of half a mile, and it can cost you £2.50. Late night buses, including the last one, or the one before, might not even turn up, and you either walk home or it's a taxi. Stagecoach mounted legal challenges to Andy Burnham's bus reforms, yet they can't even run an efficient and reliable bus service for passengers.