Bus value for money fails to impress

THE vast majority of passengers are satisfied with local bus services — but value for money is under question.

Punctuality, driver behaviour and cost were named the main areas for improvement throughout Greater Manchester buses in a passenger survey.

While 84 per cent of users are satisfied with services overall, only 60 per cent were satisfied in value for money terms.

Transport for Greater Manchester’s bus stops score quite well, although there is room for improvement on personal safety (72 per cent) and litter (63 per cent). Less than three quarters of passengers are satisfied with punctuality.

The greeting (64 per cent) and attitude of drivers (67 per cent) were also highlighted, and cleanliness came in at 70 per cent.

Councillor Andrew Fender, chairman of the TfGM Committee, said: “This survey provides a very important insight into how the bus network is performing — what passengers are happy with and where there is room for improvement. We’ve had a mixed set of results in Greater Manchester, arguably driven in part by the sheer number of journeys made in the area each year. The evidence here gives us and operators a very clear steer on where our collective energies should be focused.”