Recently re-elected Greater Manchester Mayor, Andy Burnham has promised to accelerate his plans to improve public transport in the city-region during his second term in office.
Public transport formed a key component of Andy Burnham’s election campaign, and following the 6th May vote, has unveiled a number of new measures he intends to introduce to improve connections in Greater Manchester.
Plans to bring the city-region’s bus network under public control are now proposed to be accelerated to be complete by May 2024, with immediate discussions with government promised for further funding for franchising and to integrate ticketing with Metrolink. 100 km of walking and cycling routes as part of the Bee Network have also been pledged to complete by the end of the year, along with a further 95 electric vehicle charging points. A new Greater Manchester Bike Hire scheme is also expected to launch in November, with a supplier being announced in June.
Following the successes of the Stockport Mayoral Development Corporation, which is on track to deliver 1,000 new homes in the town centre by 2023, Andy Burnham has also expressed his support for a similar partnership with Rochdale Council to regenerate Middleton town centre. As in Stockport, the mayor will also work with TfGM to explore the business case for extending the Metrolink to the town.
Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, said:
Across the world, the most successful city-regions have one thing in common – an affordable, integrated and accessible transport network. People in Greater Manchester have made clear that they won’t settle for second best any longer – that is why on day one of my second term as Mayor I’m vowing to accelerate the delivery of a world-class transport network for our city-region and its people. It is absolutely critical to our future economic and social prosperity.
“People here deserve a transport network where you can seamlessly travel across our city-region on buses, trams and trains – without spending a fortune each time. We will deliver this alongside hundreds of new Electric Vehicle charging points, a bike hire scheme and world-class cycling and walking corridors which will make everyday trips to school, to work and to the shops safe, easy and fun. This will benefit our people and our planet as we step up our plans for carbon neutrality.”