Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham has said 'the teething problems are over' after the ground breaking Bee Network's introduction to Bolton.
The public controlled bus network, known by its distinctive yellow branding, rolled out in Bolton just last Sunday amid what the Greater Manchester mayor has admitted were a “bumpy” first few days.
Mr Burnham was in Bolton to take his regular question and answer session, which he stages throughout Greater Manchester.
Addressing a question at the University of Bolton, Mr Burnham told the audience this represented the biggest shake up to buses services in 40 years.
He said: “I’m not going to say everything is exactly where it should be yet but that process of being more reliable is already happening.”
He added: “We would all put our hands up and say services were bumpy on the Sunday and Monday was the same.”
A distinctive Bee Network bus (Image: Newsquest)
But Mr Burnham told the audience that services had gone on the improve from Tuesday onwards and that the team behind the Bee Network had “pulled off something massive, on time and on budget.”
At the meeting hosted by the Deane Road based university, Mr Burnham addressed topic ranging from housing to policing.
The bulk of time was spent discussing the new Bee Network and came after Mr Burnham apologised to passengers in an interview with The Bolton News on Monday for the disruptions that hit the new network on day one.
He repeatedly emphasised that the new franchising system meant that bus services were now held accountable by democratic bodies in a way that had not been the case since the 1980s.
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Mr Burnham said: “Bolton is in control of its buses and that is a good thing as far as I am concerned.
“Because now if services are not there you can hold us to account whereas before there was nothing you could do really.”
Speaking after the event had concluded, Mr Burnham acknowledged the difficulties over the last week but said he was confident this had now been resolved.
He said: “We know Bolton has had a bumpy week but we really are seeing now that the teething problems are over.”
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