I look forward to prices using the Oyster card coming down significantly from the flat rate fare, as in London. Although I suspect that's too much to ask as there's a profit to be made somewhere at passengers' expense...

Voting against Congestion Tax and now we get something that is transport
orientated and long overdue.

Must be a General Election in the Offing...

"But council chiefs in Greater Manchester have been looking at ways to revive the plan."

It seems Labour are certainly going to introduce the congestion charge one way or another.Remember this at the next elections,because once they are over and labour gets in again,they will push again for the congestion charge.

And to think that they said this wouldn't happen if we voted 'NO' to the congestion charge! And there have been other changes too that they said wouldn't happen. And they call themselves politicians.... Oh wait....

Could we overcharge Londoners and have reduced fares here. They have reduced fares for Londoners and overcharge us.

Anyway, it would never work here. Whilst they have been privatised like us, their public transport is regulated and ours isn't. Stagecoach and First are like the Rupert Murdoch of Public Transport.

How can a oyster card speed journey's up as public transport is run by timetables.

If the prices are commensurate with london , brill if they are not stick it up your a**e GMPTE

Hurrah, at last we are to move into the 1990's with an oyster card. Great news, well done to all concerned. Will it be an actual oyster card so I can simply use my current oyster card or will we need another one. Rather stupid if we have our own.

Any extra money needed should come from First, Metrolink, Stagecoach etc. After all they will benefit as their will be fewer people not paying.

However........

"Lord Adonis said: “The benefits of smart ticketing to passengers are clear - quicker, easier and potentially better value journeys on trains, buses and trams, whichever company runs the service."

I don't like the potentially cheaper bit, sounds like we will get an oyster card and prices will go up depsite the clear savings in not having ticket machines, not handling cash, not having to wait as long at stops and having more people pay.

Also, I thought it was TIF or nowt. Was that a wee lie there Richard?

It is only a year ago that the Government had no money for Manchester travel unless they voted for a congestion charge. Do I detect trying to grab votes at the forthcoming election?

Just adopt the same system so we can travel in an even better city.

The Oyster system in London came at an initial contract cost of £100m, and even now years later it is not operational on most National Rail routes. £2.2m is not even close to the amount of money required to implement the scheme. Manchester is not getting the Oyster card system, this is a pre-election gimmick.

I agree Mark S, prices have to come down on public transport! in London its £1 to use the bus....Peel Green to Irlam on the bus the other day cost my wife £3.50 single fare, its only 3 miles!! absolute joke!

Oyster Card logs all your movements, BB etc.

they should have called it a gold card because thats what it will cost!! after new year travel fares are on the up and also petrol prices are have already started to rise again, happy xmas from your friendly go lucky NU LABOORRREEEE, And lets not forget our soldiers in Afghanistan etc fighting a war that we should of kept out of!!!

This has been a long time coming. Catching buses on one ticket is too much of a nuisance now because there are too many companies that don't accept the same ticket. If one card could be used across the whole network for buses, trams and trains, it would be great but the price has to be reasonable enough to make people want to leave their cars at home.

When will this rotten and backrupt government stop the spending? Another £2.2 Million pounds when we're facing the largest defecit ever, makes you wonder if Brown is trying to totally wreck the UK economy, in a fit a pique.

Surely it's time to be thinking about where the savings can be made.

Transport bosses in each area must officially bid for the money, but the cash has already been earmarked for Greater Manchester, West Midlands, Tyne and Wear, Merseyside, South Yorkshire, and West Yorkshire, Nottingham, Leicester and Bristol.

why do they have to bid, all that means is that each council will bring in a consultant to write the bid and straight away they are down to less than £2m due to fees, if the cash is earmarked just hand it out and cut out the greedy middlemen and let the full £2.2m be used for what it was intended.

This still wont make me get on public transport

Sounds fishy to me. Wonder how much we'll have to shell out.

Strange how Manchester keeps receiving central government funding without introducing the Con Charge. Just shows what a CON the charge would have been.

£2m will just pay for the consultation and all the many meetings...... the actual cost will be met by Manchester council tax payers whether we want it or not. Hands up all those that believe the cost of a single bus fare will drop to the same price as London, a flat fare of £1.20 ??? Oh is that a pink elephant flying in the sky ????

what a surprise another plan going ahead after richard leese said "there was no plain B"

Hilarious!

Finally! This would really save money and time, plus save looking for loose change.

Ahmed, Manchester

oh look! a little bit more! according to Phelan, Leese and co we got nothing if we voted no this time last year.

and now with the general election looming upon us, labour are now giving us the things they said we wouldn't be getting!

suprise suprise!

but they have done this before, back when they where voted in and in the last general election the promised massive spending on public transport and we've never had any. what the difference now? we still wont get anything even if they have a third term in power.

ive got my crystal ball out now and i predict the next headline on here from Adonis will be that we will be getting the brand new trains that we where told a while back we where not getting anymore!

Rammylad: "Will it be an actual oyster card so I can simply use my current oyster card or will we need another one. Rather stupid if we have our own."

It will be a different system - ITSO. This proposal is nothing new. The ITSO card has been trialled in Sheffield as Yorcard for some time now. ITSO has been intended as the national standard for years, so if anything, Oyster will have to change to fit in with the rest of the country.

Marksy: "I agree Mark S, prices have to come down on public transport! in London its £1 to use the bus....Peel Green to Irlam on the bus the other day cost my wife £3.50 single fare, its only 3 miles!! absolute joke!"

London also has £1billion of subsidy pumped into its bus system every year to keep it functioning, along with a congestion charge. People in Greater Manchester rejected the latter and I can't see people being too enthusiastic about an increase in the average Council Tax of around £1,000 in order to provide the former.

Angelene19: "This has been a long time coming. Catching buses on one ticket is too much of a nuisance now because there are too many companies that don't accept the same ticket. If one card could be used across the whole network for buses, trams and trains, it would be great"

There already is one. It's called System One.