THERE will be no changes made to the Vantage bus network as transport bosses believe they have the capacity right.

With the V1 and V2 service into Manchester cut back during the pandemic, residents have complained of overcrowded buses and being stranded at bus stops as the service has not resumed to full capacity.

After a petition calling to "drastically improve" the Vantage network reached more than 1,700 signatures, Transport for Greater Manchester and First Manchester added a handful of extra buses last month to try to alleviate passenger issues.

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Leigh Journal: The guided busway was set up to ease connectivity into Manchester in 2016The guided busway was set up to ease connectivity into Manchester in 2016 (Image: TfGM)

However, as complaints have still persisted, these issues were addressed at a GMCA Bus Services Sub-Committee heard on Friday, November 18.

The main issue on Leigh's Guided Busway is punctuality and not over capacity, transport bosses believe.

Nick Roberts, Head of Services & Commercial Development at TfGM suggested that some passengers aren't getting on buses because they don't want to stand up or get on an unbranded vehicle.

Leigh Journal: Nick Roberts, Head of Services & Commercial Development at TfGMNick Roberts, Head of Services & Commercial Development at TfGM (Image: Greater Manchester Combined Authority)

Mr Roberts said: "When we looked at some of the figures when it appeared that passengers weren’t boarding the service because we thought the capacity was full, that wasn’t the case.

“Quite a lot of passengers on the Vantage services don’t get on the bus when they think it’s full, but they get on the bus because they’d rather wait sometimes for a branded vehicle, or sometimes because they just want a seat and don’t want to get on a crowded bus. 

“So the buses aren’t always full, but some people just like to wait for the next one because they’re guaranteed a seat.

"So we do think that we’ve got the capacity right on Vantage at the moment and the figures show that in terms of pre-Covid levels, capacity is averaging at around 70 percent of those pre-Covid figures."

In terms of the V2 service from Atherton and Tyldesley, Mr Roberts said that passenger figures remain "very low" so they do not believe extra resources need to be placed on this route.

The bosses concluded that punctuality of the buses was the main issue, due to congestion in Manchester city centre, and they would continue to monitor both the V1 and V2 services.