Passenger numbers 'increasing week by week' on new Manchester night buses

Passenger numbers on the new Manchester night buses are 'increasing week by week', transport bosses have said as newly-published figures indicate the trial scheme is proving a success.

Two services - the V1 and 36 - started running throughout the night from September 1 as part of a year-long pilot. It's the first time a publicly-operated night bus service has run in the city region since the mayor took control of buses last year.

Bosses said the buses would support the region's night-time economy and those who work in it - from hospitality staff to health staff and logistics workers.

READ MORE: Metrolink issues warning over 'full network closure' this weekend

The first Bee Network night buses are connecting Manchester with Leigh and Bolton via Salford. The trial involves services running at least every hour, providing 24-hour connectivity. The mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, said if the trial goes well, they'll look to expand night buses into other areas of Greater Manchester.

Now new data has revealed how many people are actually using them. Between September 1 and September 28, Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) said around 7,000 trips were made across the new, additional hourly services, which run between midnight and 6.30am on the V1, and between 11.45pm and 6.55am on the 36.

The scheme is also having a positive impact on the number of people using later-running services, with a total of 53,413 travelling on both new and existing night buses between 10pm and 7am, said TfGM.

The weekly average number of passengers boarding the V1 and 36 between 10pm and 7am has grown by 4 per cent on the former and 6 per cent on the latter.

Mr Burnham said: "Before we launched this pilot, we knew that people had