Bee Network buses more on-time than private services - but passengers don't feel that benefit
Bee Network buses turn up on-time more than the private services they replaced — but passengers don't feel that benefit, a new report says.
The study, written by watchdog Transport Focus, says passengers' perception of punctuality in Greater Manchester did not improve last year, 'with only two thirds of passengers being satisfied that buses are on time'.
However the survey covers 2024, when Bee Network buses did not cover the entirety of Greater Manchester. Services were introduced to Wigan, Bolton, and Salford in September 2023.
Rochdale, Oldham, north Manchester, and Bury joined the network in March 2024, but the remaining 50 percent of the city's routes in Stockport, Trafford, and south Manchester were only taken over on 5 January this year. The research therefore covers both private and publicly-controlled services.
But Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) data — the body which runs the Bee Network — suggests buses are more on-time than what they replaced.
The latest statistics say Bee Network buses were on time 75 percent to 81 percent of last week, and both public and private services were on time 65 percent to 72 percent in the same week last year.
Fran Wilkinson, TfGM's customer and growth director, said: "Transport Focus acknowledges that this survey was done at a time when Greater Manchester was still in the process of delivering bus franchising and bringing local services under public control, something which hasn't been done anywhere in the UK for over 40 years.
"We've brought in a significant change right across Greater Manchester's bus network and with that comes inevitable bumps in the road. There were dips in performance when we launched Bee Network services in both the first and second tranche, and that could well reflect in this feedback.
"But we've since shown that as services have settled and we've focused intense efforts on delivering improvements, buses in these areas are now more reliable than they were pre-franchising."
She added: "When this survey was carried out, between 25 percent and 50 percent of local buses came within the control of the Bee Network, and as of January this year we have taken full control of the entire network, which includes 577 routes, 1,600 buses and accounts for more than 160 million trips a year.
"With increased control comes more accountability, and we are working incredibly hard to improve on the things that matter most to our bus passengers, such as safety, reliability and affordability of our services, as part of our efforts to reverse decades-long decline in bus patronage in our region and transform how people get around Greater Manchester.
"The Transport Focus report also recognises our efforts to deliver on these fronts with passengers having better perceptions of bus services, frequency, value for money, connections, customer information, and relationships between passengers and drivers. The job is never done, and we will retain a relentless focus on continuously improving the Bee Network for the benefit of everyone who uses it."
Overall, the report ranked Greater Manchester's buses as 36th-best for customer satisfaction in the country, with nearly four in five passengers (79 percent) saying they were happy.
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