TRAMS are unlikely to ever run through the streets of Bolton, according to a Greater Manchester transport boss.

GMPTE manager Mike Peet said plans to bring the successful Metrolink system to Bolton were not on the table and were unlikely to be so "for the foreseeable future".

Instead, the town will be given a network of "quality bus corridors", a series of road improvements designed to make travelling buses easier.

One is already in place between Bolton and Leigh, and GMPTE is now considering other areas for expansion.

Mr Peet, project co-ordinator for the Northern Orbital Quality Bus Corridor, said around £100 million would be pumped into the scheme over the next few years.

He said the corridors were not purely bus lanes and added: "They are considerably cheaper than the Metrolink."

Bolton is being given special funding for public transport as compensation for being left out of the Greater Manchester tram network.

The town, along with Wigan, will be one of just two districts in the county not to have trams by the end of the decade.

Metrolink, which runs through the streets of Manchester and has lines to Bury, Radcliffe, Eccles and Altrincham, is set to undergo a major extension to areas such as Manchester Airport, Rochdale and Oldham.

Mr Peet said: "Bolton receives special funding because it doesn't benefit from the Metrolink pot, but there are some exciting developments being put in place and passengers will definitely benefit from the bus corridors."

Quality Bus Corridors aim to provide better services for passengers with quicker journeys, high-tech shelters and improvements to lighting, crossing points and paving.

Mr Peet said the corridors were not merely bus lanes.

"They go beyond that," he said. "Any future ones in Bolton would run on the same lines as the corridor from the town to Leigh. Passengers have seen better journey times.

"We aim to have 90 per cent of services running on schedule or at least within three minutes."

Mr Peet said steps were also being made to cut down on crime. "New shelters will have CCTV alongside better maps and information which will make travelling by bus much safer," he said.