THE Manchester Evening News today launches a campaign to sort out the bus chaos crippling the heart of Manchester.

And commuters, business leaders and politicians are right behind us.

Dozens of empty buses blocked traffic in the city centre yet again yesterday as rival transport firms took their free-for-all battle for passengers into its third week. The bus wars broke out when UK North began running 12 services an hour on the Manchester to Chorlton route already served by Stagecoach.

It meant 30 buses trying to cram into the same bus stops every hour, causing massive tailbacks which brought the city centre to a standstill.

Passengers on Metrolink trams have been stuck for up to an hour. And some travellers have been forced to get off buses on the outskirts of the city centre and walk to their destination, while cars and lorries have also been caught in gridlock.

The council has been forced to issue parking tickets to buses waiting for more than two minutes, while the Greater Manchester Passenger Transport Executive has appealed to the Traffic Commissioner for a special order limiting services.

This order came into force this week, but yesterday there were still crippling jams caused by too many buses.

One reader complained his daughter took one and a half hours to get from Bury to Manchester by bus - and some workers had to abandon their cars in York Street.

Now the M.E.N. can reveal the government has drawn up plans to bring back regulation of bus services in cities including Manchester.

Action

A leaked memo from Transport Secretary Douglas Alexander suggests a new transport Bill could bring the buses back under the control of a regulator within two years.

The M.E.N. Get It Sorted team is now launching a drive for immediate action.

MPs Graham Stringer and Tony Lloyd, Lord Terry Thomas of Macclesfield, the Manchester Chamber of Commerce and the environmental think-tank Sustainability Northwest have all thrown their support behind plans to bring back regulation.

And scores of our readers have contacted the M.E.N. by post and email to register their dismay at the chaos which is affecting trams as well as buses.

GMPTE, which oversees the industry in the region, said "voluntary partnership with bus operators has not delivered nearly enough real improvements for passengers".

Its deputy director general, Geoff Inskip, said: "We need controls that would allow us to plan the whole network, including those bus services that may run at a loss but act as a lifeline for local communities." The cross-party Passenger Transport Authority is proposing a new approach, allowing it to enter into a binding partnership with bus operators that is structured to reward good practice and penalise poor performance.

Sustainability Northwest estimates that every 20 buses driving into central Manchester each day generate about one tonne of carbon dioxide.

"What is happening in central Manchester at the moment is tantamount to an environmental crime," said SNW's chief executive, Erik Bichard.

Engines

Environmental campaigner Lord Terry Thomas of Macclesfield said: "We must also insist on buses being powered by energy other than petrol - such as hybrid engines.

"And from talking to people in the government, I've also been given the distinct impression that something will be done about it in the near future."

Blackley MP Graham Stringer said: "I have reams of letters from people who have lost jobs and missed hospital appointments because the buses don't come.

"A regulated system could prevent situations where people have to travel through town to get from Moston to Blackley and be better for the environment."

Emma Antrobus, spokeswoman for Manchester Chamber of Commerce, said city centre businesses "were bearing the cost" of the extra congestion in delayed deliveries, late staff and fed-up shoppers.

Tony Lloyd, MP for Manchester Central, said: "Bus companies have licence to take people for a ride, but not in the way they have been doing for so long."

Gordon Reid, who heads the City Centre Management Company, said: "There is a strong lobby, to which we would subscribe, which feels the current situation is not ideal for a city like Manchester.

"London enjoys a different arrangement and we would welcome the opportunity to see a similar situation put in place here." Mark Threapleton, Stagecoach's Manchester managing director, said: "Undoing the successes of the deregulated market is an unnecessary, and hugely more expensive, way of achieving the objective of running better services.

"Our view is that the current legislation needs to be strengthened to enable public authorities to be more involved in how bus services are operated, and at the same time involving bus companies in the development of local priorities to ensure bus passengers receive the priority on Greater Manchester roads that they deserve."

It is believed discussions between Stagecoach, UK North, the city council and GMPTE have been stymied by competition laws which prevent firms discussing routes, timetables and fares.

Is re-regulation the answer? Have your say.