Bee Network buses have been criticised as 'dangerously crowded' by passengers, with many tram lines still closed across Greater Manchester. Commuters have branded the situation 'unacceptable', saying people are being turned away from services that are full.
Three Metrolink lines closed for two weeks
Three Metrolink lines are currently closed for a fortnight for engineering works on one of the busiest stretches of tram line in Europe. Deansgate-Castlefield, Cornbrook and Trafford Bar stations have been closed for a week and will remain shut until Monday (November 2).
The two-week closure means no trams are running on the Altrincham, Trafford Centre and Eccles lines. Services to East Didsbury and Manchester Airport are ending at Firswood, while the Rochdale line is stopping at Exchange Square.
Passengers share frustrations
Lydia Samuel, who lives in Salford, took to social media to share her frustrations with the Bee Network, which she said is 'not serving people'. She claims the buses are 'dangerously crowded' and that people are left 'unable to get to work' and walking hours just to get home.
Lydia, an office worker in the city, said: "The Bee Network is not serving people. We’re the second major city in the UK and we have no trams at the minute. They have decided that replacement buses aren’t needed for the majority of stops."
She added: "So for people from Eccles, to get to Salford Quays, you can only really get the 33 bus. These buses are getting cancelled, people are waiting 40 minutes for the bus and then they’re sending single decks and people can’t even get on."
Speaking to the Manchester Evening News, she added that the situation "is not adequate for Greater Manchester's ever growing population."
Remote work and longer journeys
Alex McCann, who lives in Altrincham, said he has made all of his work remote while the improvements are taking place. He has moved all of his meetings to Zoom because it now takes him up to 85 minutes to get into the centre in rush hour, compared with an average of 30 minutes on the tram.
Alex, 48, said: "The bus just constantly stops the whole way from Altrincham to Manchester. You really have to plan every step of your journey."
He added that he has been going into the centre for concerts and events booked in advance, but that it is a 'chore' getting into the city.
TfGM's response
TfGM has announced it will run an additional express shuttle bus service between Eccles and Media City from 7am to 7pm from Monday (October 26) to help increase capacity. It says it has strengthened capacity of its Bee Network services during peak hours, including tripling capacity on the 263.
Ian Davies, TfGM's Network Director for Metrolink, said: "There is never a perfect time to do major engineering work on one of the busiest tram networks in Europe. This is a complex operation to replace 4km of track, renew points and improve drainage."
He added: "We listened carefully to the feedback people gave us of their experiences during the summer closures when they said replacement bus journeys took too long, and that there were gaps in services. The express replacement buses intend to complement existing rail and Bee Network bus services, but we are aware of capacity issues in Eccles and we are making changes to help with this."
