BUS passengers travelling to the Royal Bolton Hospital will be among the first to benefit from a new colour-coding map service.

The 501 service - which operates between Farnworth, the hospital, Bolton town centre and Moss Bank Way - is the first bus route in the borough to be included in First Manchester's Overground scheme.

Like London's Underground rail network, each high-frequency route in Greater Manchester will be marked on a map with its own colour.

The buses will be colour-coded to match their map colour and will have their main destinations on their sides.

The Overground is billed as an "easy to use, turn-up and go" service, promising a bus every 10 minutes.

It is aimed at persuading more people to use buses rather than their cars.

First Manchester hope the Overground scheme will make timetables a thing of the past because of the short waiting times. More routes will be added to the maps as bus services are improved.

Overground routes will also benefit from a £34 million investment in 280 new buses for Greater Manchester, announced in March.

Russell Gard, First's regional commercial director, said the scheme provided a real alternative for car users.

"Overground will enable us to deliver additional benefits for customers and help us to fulfil our promises in improving services," he said.

"I'm particularly pleased that the important 501 service will be among the first to benefit from the Overground scheme."