'Key' - Andy Burnham issues Bee Network night bus update after first few weeks of Greater Manchester trial

The importance of making sure people in the region who work in the night time economy get to and from work safely is a main reason behind the trial. Two night bus routes started running from September 1 that also help revellers get home from a night out.

These were the services on the V1 and 36 routes connecting Manchester with Leigh and Bolton via Salford, running at least every hour both ways, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Figures from the first month of the trial show around 7,000 journeys have been made on the night buses. 

Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham has said he feels encouraged by the uptake of usage on the trial. He also reaffirmed that keeping the night buses going in Greater Manchester is ‘a key part’ of the Bee Network plan, with hopes it will become permanent.

The bus network across Greater Manchester is in the process of being gradually brought under public control. The final phase launches in the south of the region on January 5 2025, and this will make Greater Manchester the first region outside of London to regain full control of its bus network. 

Burnham said: “Before we launched this pilot, we knew that people had been crying out for better public transport at night and into the early mornings, so I am really encouraged to see so many people are making use of our night buses. Providing late-night bus services remains a key part of our vision for the Bee Network, and these encouraging figures show that the demand is there for safer, reliable and more affordable public transport at these times of the evening.

“The far-ranging benefits of these services are already being felt, whether it’s helping people getting home from a night out and boosting our night-time economy, or creating essential new connections for the people working within this sector to get to and from their place of work. This pilot is crucial in allowing us to gather the insight we need to deliver on our aspirations for more Bee Network night buses, while also making the case for extra funding to provide better services for the people and businesses in Greater Manchester.”

Vernon Everitt, Transport Commissioner for Greater Manchester, said: “Trialling these two night bus services is allowing us to open up more transport options for people working in our night-time economy, which in turn enables further economic growth and higher productivity for our growing region.”