Mayor Andy Burnham to ‘revolutionise’ transport as he unveils latest plans

Newly re-elected Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, will seek to transform the region’s transport system.

Putting ‘transport revolution’ at the centre of plans for his second term, Burnham said he will be accelerating plans for a ‘London style’ transport system so that all parts of Greater Manchester have buses integrated with Metrolink by May 2024 – a year earlier than originally planned

Ahead of the first meeting of the Mayor’s new Bee Network Delivery Board,  he also announced 95 new electric vehicle charging points by the end of this year, with plans for a further 200 charging points next year, in partnership with government

He has pledged to complete 100km of cycling and walking routes by the end of the year and a new bike hire scheme to launch in November, with the preferred delivery partner unveiled in June

Burnham is also opening negotiations with Network Rail to agree a plans to make all rail stations in the city-region accessible by 2025, ‘or to give Greater Manchester the funding and power to do it.’

Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, said: “Across the world, the most successful city-regions have one thing in common – an affordable, integrated and accessible transport network.

“People in Greater Manchester have made clear that they won’t settle for second best any longer – that is why on day one of my second term as Mayor I’m vowing to accelerate the delivery of a world-class transport network for our city-region and its people.  It is absolutely critical to our future economic and social prosperity.

“People here deserve a transport network where you can seamlessly travel across our city-region on buses, trams and trains – without spending a fortune each time.

“We will deliver this alongside hundreds of new Electric Vehicle charging points, a bike hire scheme and world-class cycling and walking corridors which will make everyday trips to school, to work and to the shops safe, easy and fun. This will benefit our people and our planet as we step up our plans for carbon neutrality.”

The Mayor has also written to Rochdale Council to offer his support for the creation of a new partnership to drive the regeneration of Middleton Town Centre, and is asking TfGM to accelerate the development of a business case to bring Metrolink to Middleton.

The new partnership will be tasked with preparing a masterplan for the town centre, including funding proposals to bring Metrolink to Middleton.