Bee Network hits 10 million contactless bus journeys

Four months on from the launch of ‘tap and go’ ticketing on Bee Network buses, more than 10 million journeys across Greater Manchester have been made using contactless payment.

Since its launch on 24 March, more than 1.1 million individual customers have used contactless tap and go on buses, with the milestone 10 millionth journey being made on a 143 service from St Mary’s Hospital, Manchester Royal Infirmary.

Of all journeys made on Bee Network buses by paying adult passengers, more than half (57%) are now made using tap and go.

Tap and go allows passengers to travel seamlessly between bus and tram without the need for a ticket, making it the quickest and easiest way to pay for travel. It enables speedier boarding at stops and interchanges, cutting wait times and keeping services reliable.

Fares are automatically worked out up to the daily or weekly cap under a single, simple and affordable fare structure, meaning passengers will always pay the best price for public transport. 

The busiest day for tap and go bus journeys was on 29 April, with 109,862 trips.

Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham said:

“When we launched tap and go, I called on people to get on board with the Bee Network and give it a go, and they certainly have, with a fantastic 10 million tap and go journeys already made by more than one million different passengers.

“We want public transport to be everyone’s first choice for getting around Greater Manchester and to make that happen, we need to make it as easy as possible, and that’s what tap and go is about.

“This is a huge part of us creating the world-class public transport network Greater Manchester deserves, bringing us in line with other global cities and to anyone that hasn’t had a go and tapped on yet, I’d simply say ‘why not give it a try, get on board with us and back the Bee Network’.’”

Enabling seamless, affordable and convenient journeys is key to the success of the Bee Network, and the tap and go system means customers can travel when, where and how they want without having to plan or buy in advance.

Plans are already being developed to expand tap and go so that by 2030 people will be able to travel seamlessly by bus, train, tram and bike in Greater Manchester under a single simple fare structure.