And the Winner is!…

Recently, the tenth annual National Transport Awards 2010 was held in Greater Manchester, a city somewhat familiar to author of this blog, and the winners have been announced. Hosted by radio and television presenter Grant Stott, the National Transport Awards 2010 drew over 500 transport professionals to the prestigious ceremony at The Palace Hotel in Manchester. There are a few awards for Greater Manchester in there, so without further ado;

Stagecoach Manchester have won the award for Chris Moyes award for Bus Operator of the Year. The basis for this award in on the huge increase in passenger growth in recent years, in both fare-paying and concessionary markets.  Also of note for Stagecoach was their largely modern fleet, with 68% of the fleet now complying with Euro 3 emission standards or higher, and using a high-tech fuel additive to improve fuel consumption.

To be fair to Stagecoach, they do run a good service in Manchester, and price competitively, however, personally, I don’t think they’re the best company in Greater Manchester, let alone Great Britain. I’d like to see a smaller bus company, making great strides towards customer satisfaction and interaction, such as JPT, win an award.

GMPTE also won an award at the event, bagging the Joe Clarke award for Integrated Transport Authority of the Year. The authority was recognised for it’s commitment to improvement of facilities and services.  A blog post about GMPTE isn’t complete without a quote from Keith Whitmore, so, Councillor Keith Whitmore, GMITA Vice Chair, said: “We have worked hard in recent years to improve Greater Manchester’s bus, rail and Metrolink networks and, while there is still much more to be done, we are delighted that our achievements have been recognised.”

FirstGroup weren’t left out of the party entirely, however, as they recieved special note for the Contribution to Sustainable Transport award for their DriveGreen Scheme – although they didn’t win the top prize.

2010.07.18 / no responses / Category: Buses, First, GMPTE, JPT, Stagecoach

Mobility Ban Strikes Again

Metrolink have been making more headlines for their outrageous ban on mobility scooters...
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The MEN, in this article, highlight the story of Mum Sheila Smithers, who was unfairly kicked off a Metrolink tram because she uses a mobility scooter.
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This is the just another in a long like of similar incidents, that seem to be causing outrage among the residents of Manchester. The ban is made even more silly by the fact that no other light rail system in the United Kingdom enforces such a ban. I personally also question the rights of people under the Disability Discrimination Act, surely there must be laws in place to prevent this kind of thing?
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One thing is for sure, Metrolink need to sort this problem out soon. Expensive prices and bad publicity have been turning people away from the trams recently, and this does nothing to help Metrolink’s cause.

Philip Purdy, GMPTE’s Metrolink director, gave the usual shpeel: “The safety of our passengers is paramount and the transportation of mobility scooters on the tram network would open up a number of unacceptable risks to both scooter users and other passengers.”.
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Utter nonsense, but there you go.

2010.07.03 / no responses / Category: Uncategorized

Metrolink’s future under threat?

Manchester’s Metrolink tram system has had a bad start to June, with the threat of government funding being cut and issues surfacing regarding the land that the system plans to expand upon.
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The most worrying news for Metrolink however comes as the Con-Dems announced their intention to review the £170m Metrolink funding package, which could spell bad news for Metrolink and GMPTE if the funding is cut. The contracts for the extention from Droylsden to Ashton and Chorlton to Didsbury have already been signed.
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Should the funding be cut work will have to stop on the new Metrolink extentions, which could harm the long-term future of Metrolink. Manchester Withington MP John Leech has said he had received assurances that the project would go ahead, however.
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Ashton MP David Heyes said: “Metrolink is vital for the economic future and it would be catastrophic if the plug was pulled now.”
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Keith Whitmore, Lib Dem chairman of the Greater Manchester Integrated Transport Authority, said: “These projects represent good value for money, bringing considerable social and economic benefits to Greater Manchester. Contracts relating to this phase of expansion were signed nearly two months ago and work is well underway.”
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On the same day news broke that one of the new tram stops on the planned expansion, Burton Road, would be destructive to “a haven for bats, newts and rare birds, and is in the Albert Park Conservation Area.”
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Peter Cushing, interim Metrolink manager, said: “Detailed ecological surveys have been carried out along the route of the new East Didsbury Metrolink line and measures to minimise any potential impact on wildlife are being put in place.
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“Some larger habitat replacements, such as new ponds, may require planning permission. In the case of Albemarle Allotments, we received planning permission on April 21 and we are now continuing with plans to build the pond.”

2010.06.05 / no responses / Category: GMPTE, Stagecoach, Trams

Optare win largest ever hybrid bus order from GMITA

Optare have won the contract to build the largest contract for hybrid buses in history from GMITA.

GMITA have ordered eight Solo SR 8.2m’s, plus 12 Vesa 9.7ms, for Wigan’s new Metroshuttle services. They have also ordered another ten Solos and another 20 Versas for a general fleet, and 16 Tempo 12m uses for school services.
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The order is worth £13 million, and is being part-funded by the Government’s Green Bus Fund and a further £1.3m from other funders, including Wigan Council, who will benefit from the Metroshuttle service.
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All buses will take advantage of Optare’s diesel-electric hybrid system, using ultra-capacitors, as well as the company’s Eco Drive system to manage driver behaviour. The buses will also have telematics, combining a passenger counting device, real time information, CCTV and vehicle diagnostics.

Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Executive’s (GMPTE) interim bus and rail director Michael Renshaw, said: “Public transport has a key role to play in helping the city region to cut carbon emissions. The introduction of a new fleet of low carbon, more fuel-efficient buses will be an important step towards achieving our environmental aims,”

Meanwhile, Optare CEO Jim Sumner, who pioneered Eco Drive, says: “The fact is that all hybrid buses are not the same: we firmly believe that our Eco Drive hybrids will set the benchmark for emission and fuel saving advantages.”

And he adds: “This order emphasises our lead in the design and production of low and zero emission buses… When we launched Optare’s Eco Drive programme last September we believed it would be a winner with operators seeking both low emissions and realistic costs. We anticipate being able to announce further orders for low carbon bus models in the near future, both from UK and export markets.”

2010.05.18 / no responses / Category: Buses, GMPTE

Bolton’s Metroshuttle; Extended to 2011.

Bolton has extended it’s Metroshuttle service until 2011, and awarded the tender to Maytree Travel. Bluebird, the previous operator, will handed over the service on the 25th of Jan.
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The service is jointly funded by Bolton Council and the GMITA. The 25-seater single decker buses will also have a new royal blue and orange livery to reflect both the distinctive Bolton brand and the Metroshuttle services operating in other districts of Greater Manchester.
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Councillor John Byrne, Bolton Council’s Executive Member for Development, said: “This is great news for the public and we hope to see more people hopping on and off the free buses.
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“The feedback we’ve had has been really good, with more than three quarters of users recently surveyed very satisfied with the service. We hope that many more people continue to enjoy using the free buses.”
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Councillor David White, Chair of GMITA’s Bus Network and GMPTE Services Committee, added: “We hope that the free Metroshuttle will continue to help shoppers and residents get around Bolton town centre and that the new branding will help attract more people to use it.
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“Metroshuttle services can be of real benefit to local economies, and offer a convenient, frequent and free way for people to get around town centres.”
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Gary Hawthorn, Managing Director of Maytree Travel, said: “We’re a local operator and I’m really pleased that we secured this contract to provide a service which will help local people.

“We can hopefully build up the service with our own network as all of our 20 bus services will advertise the free shuttle.”

The service operates on a 10-minute circular route around the town centre with a total of 12 stops, connecting the railway station via Newport Street with the bus station via Black Horse Street. The route was revised to include an additional stop near Sainsbury’s on Crook Street, last March.

Operating hours of the service have also been tailored to respond to demand, with the new service in operation from 9am to 5pm.

2010.01.28 / no responses / Category: Bluebird, Buses, Maytree