Transport authority appoints chairman

The Transport for Greater Manchester Committee has appointed Cllr Mark Aldred as chairman of its bus and services sub-committee.

The role makes Aldred, a councillor at Wigan Council, one of three vice chairs of the transport authority.

Launched on 1 April this year, the Transport for Greater Manchester Committee is a joint committee of the Greater Manchester Combined Authority.

The Transport for Greater Manchester Committee undertakes much of the work previously carried out by Greater Manchester Integrated Transport Authority, which has been abolished, and advises the Combined Authority on transport policy.

Aldred said: "Four out of every five public transport journeys in Greater Manchester are made on the bus, and about 20 per cent of the bus network in Greater Manchester is provided by the authority using public money – so we pay bus companies to run services that otherwise wouldn't be provided.

"In the current climate, that is an area that is going to throw up some considerable challenges, for us and commercial operators, and we're going to have to look at more cost-effective ways of providing essential connections, including our successful, door-to-door Local Link services.

"We're committed to driving up standards on bus services across Greater Manchester. We've made some progress by working in partnership with operators but want to build on that and reach a point where passengers have a consistent good standard of service, no matter who runs their service.

"It is going to be a very interesting and challenging year, but one that I am really looking forward to."