STAGECOACH has pledged to spend £70m on 400 new buses in Greater Manchester if the region's bid for £3bn of public transport cash is successful.
Brian Souter, co-founder of the £1.5bn-a-year transport company, was in Manchester to announce an initial investment of £15m on a fleet of 100 new low-emission buses.
Those new vehicles will go into service on key routes to and from the city centre over the next six months.
But Mr Souter said his company were prepared to go much further if Greater Manchester's bid to the government's Transport Innovation Fund (TIF) was successful.
The region's ten local authorities voted eight-to-two in July to apply for £1.2bn and permission to borrow £1.8bn more to revolutionise trams, trains and buses - in return for a peak-hour congestion charge of up to £5 a day.
If the Department for Transport (DfT) gives the go-ahead, Stagecoach will pay £70m on 400 new buses.
Some 250 would replace existing vehicles while 150 would be additional stock. The company would also fund two new bus depots at a cost of £20m, and spend £10m on staff training - taking the entire five-year package up to £100m.
The Stagecoach Group is one of Britain's biggest transport companies, and its Manchester's subsidiary is responsible for 81.5m bus passenger journeys every year. Stagecoach Manchester has around 1,600 employees in the region and a 600-strong bus fleet. The group has an annual turnover in excess of £1.5bn pre-tax profits of £184m for the financial year ending April 2007.
Mr Souter told the M.E.N.: "The TIF bid is a real opportunity to do something exciting with public transport.
"There is a confidence issue around the congestion charge. We are trying to demonstrate a willingness to invest and build that confidence up.
"We really believe that public transport improvements in Manchester could be quite dramatic and we could do things as well or better than in London."
Mr Souter said figures suggested his company's performance already compared favourably with bus services in London for punctuality and price.
London's buses are subsidised publicly by 34.5p per passenger journey - seven times more than Stagecoach Manchester (4.8p). But while the reliability rate in the capital stands at 97.5 per cent, in Manchester it is 99.1 per cent.
And a weekly bus ticket in London costs £14, compared to £9.50 in Manchester.
Mark Threapleton, managing director for Stagecoach Manchester and chair of the Greater Manchester Bus Operators' Association, said: "These new buses will bring investment in our bus fleet in the city to nearly £21 million in just two years as part of our drive to get Manchester back on board the bus.
"We are fully behind Greater Manchester's vision for a high-quality, integrated public transport network for the region and its bid for a major public transport investment package from the government's TIF.
"Stagecoach is committed to delivering even better bus services to the people of Manchester. It is vital we give motorists a real and attractive alternative to the car if we are serious about tackling the issue of increasing and crippling congestion in Manchester."
Should more money be spent on public transport if the congestion charge plan is to succeed? Have your say.
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Showing comments 1 to 22 and replies | View All
john (13/09/2007 at 22:35)
Phil bell (14/09/2007 at 00:30)
wkdboy1, Woodley (14/09/2007 at 00:37)
Joe to you (14/09/2007 at 08:44)
It costs £9.50 a week for a bus ticket ....but only on Stagecoach buses.
It costs £15 a week for a bus ticket for all buses so it's already £1 a week dearer than London Buses!
You can play about with figures all you want , but look at the facts first!
benjidog, Manchester (14/09/2007 at 09:32)
Chris, Irlam (14/09/2007 at 09:38)
Hoo-bloody-ray - this is a good deal for someone but it isn't going to be the taxpayer or road user I can tell you...
polkyb (14/09/2007 at 09:50)
AND
How much of our money will AGMA be giving to Stagecoach so that they can buy the £70m worth of buses..? I am willing to bet that it's a fair bit more than £70m.
Munkey Boy, Audenshaw, Manchester (14/09/2007 at 10:44)
That's not how it works, Chris. Stagecoach do not receive any TIF money, they are a private company, all buses that run now and in the future are private and recieve no financial support to buy new buses. This pledge is from private monies only and is on top of the £3bn.
polkyb "So, First are pledging £70m. I guess we can assume the same from First, totaling £140m on buses add (Probably) £500m for Metrolink... I'm still WAY below £1b here... where is the rest going?"
polkyb, see the point above too. Buses are private companies! The £3bn goes on Metrolink, new trains, bus priority schemes, guided busways, yellow school buses, demand responsive transport. Nothing to to with buying new buses, that is for the bus companies to decide to do (or not as the case may be).
Snare Drum, Ashton-under-Lyne (14/09/2007 at 11:00)
Looks pretty smug does that Brian Souter but who wouldn't when offered so much cash that he doesn't have to pay back and can still charge what he likes in fares. So why should the motorist be expected to pay for his and any others busses. Like in any other business isn't it up to that business to pay for their own new equipment. Greased palms, backhanders and scams come to mind. Oh! and we still want a REFERENDUM.
polkyb (14/09/2007 at 11:51)
You are sayint that Stagecoack and First (being private companies) receive no money from TiF.
1. Metrolink and First north western are privately owned companies... yet (contradicting your own argument) you say they will be bought new trams/trains?!?
2. If you read the TiF bid in full, you will see a section about how the grant will be spent on buying new buses to be run by the likes of stagecoach and first, trains by first NW and new line extensions and vehicles for Serco Metrolink.
When you get on your high horse, make sure it for something you have a clue about.
Maybe a re-read of the proposition is in order?
Black Sabbath (14/09/2007 at 12:03)
Snare Drum, Ashton-under-Lyne (14/09/2007 at 12:47)
Rob (Manchester Against Road Tolls) www.manchestertolltax.com, Denton (14/09/2007 at 13:42)
alvinlwh (14/09/2007 at 16:14)
M LAZA (14/09/2007 at 17:05)
Stagecoach's Manchester business is one of its most profitable in the country yet they continue to cut services - ask that to people on my route the 60 where we have just had one bus an hour at night cancelled.
The new buses they are announcing are the least they can do - it isn't too much for passengers to ask for an all low-floor easy access fleet rather than the mix which includes twenty year old stepped access buses they use currently.
And on the cost of a bus pass - Souter is just not telling the truth. Yes a Stagecoach ONLY bus pass in Manchester costs £9.50 a week. But a proper bus ticket you can use on ANY bus costs £15 in Manchester whereas in London it costs £14 in London - and in the Capital thanks to regulation Manchester can only dream of the level of services is incomparably higher including a proper seven day a week night bus network. And what is more in London Mayor Livingstone is using his powers to bring the weekly ticket down to just £13 from the end of the month.
Munkey Boy, Audenshaw, Manchester (14/09/2007 at 17:50)
Buses are entirely privately run operations - anyone can run a bus company and receives no support from the government to run that company. The exception to that rule is where commercial services don't run to certain areas and subsidised services are run there instead, but again tax payers money is used to run the service, not pay for the actual buses.
Train and tram operators are different. They operate franchises to run existing infrastructure - the track and rolling stock is bought by using tax payers money and leased to the operator. The operator does not own the rolling stock as bus companies do own the buses.
There is no mention of TIF money being used to buy new buses, except for franchise operations such as yellow school buses or guided buses.
S P In exile, Tameside (14/09/2007 at 18:29)
Now AGMA, tif fund and ratepayers, sounds like a similarity there.
lindoman, Atherton (14/09/2007 at 19:38)
polkyb (17/09/2007 at 15:01)
Direct quote from Cllr Roger Jones in the press release dated 27/07/07:-
Councillor Roger Jones, Chair of the GMPTA, said: “Our bid makes its clear that any charging scheme would not be introduced on roads until those affected have a reliable, integrated public transport system available to provide people with a real alternative to using their cars.
“This would mean 30km of new Metrolink track, new faster bus routes using hundreds of new, better buses, including Yellow School buses, new trains, and faster, easier travel with new transport interchanges and Park and Ride facilities and better travel information and ticketing.
As you can see, he says "Hundreds of new buses INCLUDING yellow buses"
Over to you.
Black Sabbath (17/09/2007 at 15:31)
wakey1512 (17/09/2007 at 19:55)
Investment should go to other areas with an aging fleet
rammylad, ramsbottom (23/09/2007 at 09:54)
I have started to photograph all buses I see breaking the law. I one week alone I have 16 images. I only have a 15 minute walk through town and only 5 minutes of that is on bus routes.
Also the last three jams I have been in have been caused by broken down (New) double bendy buses. The last was on Friday!