A GROUNDBREAKING satellite system which will track buses and tell passengers when the next service is due to arrive will go online in Bolton later this year.

The 501 Bolton to Farnworth and 582 Bolton to Leigh will be the first bus services in the town to feature the £3.2 million Real Time Passenger Information (RTPI).

There will be electronic screens on-board buses which will tell passengers which is the next stop.

Electronic displays at designated bus stops along the two First Manchester routes will tell passengers when buses are due. The equipment has been fitted on all the 501 and 582 buses and bus stops and a single computer control centre will manage all display sites and on-bus computer units throughout Greater Manchester.

The system has been set up by transport group Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Authority.

Councillor Nick Peel, Bolton's spokesman for Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Executive, said it would revolutionise bus travel in the town.

Cllr Peel, said: "It is an excellent innovation. It will give passengers the chance to make a reasoned choice to decide whether to wait at a bus stop or not. The other benefit for passengers is that they can compare the time the bus arrives with the bus timetable. If there is a discrepancy then they can make representations to bus operators. Passengers will really have the power."

Cllr Peel added that the number of passengers using the Bolton to Leigh route has risen "significantly" during the last 12 months.

He believes that the new RTPI system will further encourage more passengers to use that particular service and public transport in general.

He said: "This is the future of bus travel and will attract more people to use buses instead of cars. People need a reliable bus service and the RTPI will hopefully help to deliver this."

The RTPI system will be featured on services from Stockport, Oldham and Middleton to Manchester. Up to 324 buses across the county will be fitted with onboard displays and 150 bus stops will have on street displays.

If the system is a success another 174 buses and 101 bus stops will be fitted with the pioneering system.