Greater Manchester secures £2m for thousands of extra school bus seats

The extra government cash will be aimed at routes which are expected to have the highest number of pupils travelling as children return to school.

It comes amid reports of some school buses driving past pupils waiting at bus stops in Wigan because they are full due to social distancing.

Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) said it has worked with operators to run around 300 extra bus journeys each weekday.

Duplicate buses for school and college students will run behind the original scheduled service at set times, with the usual route number starting in ‘S’ to show they are school services.

The Department for Education funding has been used as around 90 per cent of pupils use the commerical bus network to travel to school.

Around 150 duplicate journeys will run in the morning another 150 in the afternoon. They aim to help support journeys to and from school and free up capacity on the commercial bus network for other passengers.

Duplicate journeys, which run from the beginning of the new school year, will be in place until the autumn half-term holiday, subject to demand.

TfGM said they will continually monitor usage to make sure capacity is running in the right place and will reallocate buses if needed.

Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, said: “We’re committed to making sure children can return to school as safely as possible. While we’d still encourage pupils to travel on foot or by bike to school where they can, especially for shorter journeys, we know that isn’t an option for everyone.

“For those that must use public transport, these extra services will hopefully provide further peace of mind to parents and pupils that it is safe to travel on public transport.

“However, I must stress again that we need everyone to play their part by following safety rules and thinking about how and when they travel. These simple measures can have a big impact.”

Pupils using public transport, including the new duplicate journeys, will need to follow safe travel guidance.

They should wear a face covering on-board and in stations and interchanges, unless they’re under 11 or are exempt for another reason. While they should also keep their distance from other passengers where possible, clean their hands regularly and carry hand sanitsier with them and use contactless payment or exact change only where possible.

Yellow school buses will also be running without a pass system in place – meaning they will operate as regular school buses, so any schoolchild can use them.

To help those returning to school in September do so safely, TfGM has created a Back to School hub at tfgm.com/schools where parents and pupils can find the latest information on timetables, tickets, school bus services and further information on cycling and walking.

TfGM has also set up a web page at tfgm.com/duplicate-school-buses, where parents, carers and students can find the latest information on the extra services.