Shuttle bus plan

OLDHAMERS could soon benefit from a free town centre bus service under proposals set out by the Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Authority (GMPTA).

The scheme would be modelled on Manchester’s hugely successful metroshuttle scheme, which sees free city centre buses run on three different routes every 10 minutes.

The GMPTA has said that the expansion of the free bus travel scheme will be one of its top priorities of the next 12 months and is set to approach local councils over the coming weeks to see which towns could benefit from a free service.

Councillor Matt Colledge, GMPTA chairman, said: “Metroshuttle has been hugely popular in Manchester city centre. We want to look into whether it will be possible to introduce similar free bus services in other areas of Greater Manchester.”

The Manchester scheme is jointly paid for by the authority, Manchester City Council and private businesses and the new schemes will be funded through a similar mixture of funding.

Passengers make 2.3m journeys on the metroshuttle each year, making it the largest city centre bus service in the UK. All the buses have low floors, making it easy for people to get on and off.

The authority’s other priorities for the next year include improving bus services between some of the county’s smaller towns, working with local councils to make sure bus lanes are not blocked by other traffic and continuing to improve safety.

It will also work with Network Rail and the Department for Transport to improve the rail network in Manchester, and develop proposals for a second Metrolink route through the city centre.

Councillor John Dillon, an Oldham representative on the authority, said: “This is a scheme I would certainly welcome. Oldham is built on a hill, which makes it hard for less mobile people to get around.

“A scheme like this would connect the thriving Spindles and town square areas with different areas of the town centre. and compliment the proposed metrolink scheme.”