The Mancunian Way: We’re buzzin’

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You join me on an historic day. Or the day after an historic day at least. The Bee Network - a system that is set to improve transport for us all - finally launched in Greater Manchester yesterday.

In the first instance, buses in Wigan and Bolton, and some in Salford, Bury and Manchester, have come under public control for the first time in 40 years. A new fleet of ‘bee’ buses are on the ground and local officials are setting fares, routes and timetables.

It’ll take some time - and there were some delays on the network already this morning with the mayor apologising for teething problems. But eventually we can expect a far more streamlined service across the bus, tram and local train network.

You can find out more about what it means from transport reporter Paul Britton here and we’ve got the list of the first 175 buses entering the network here. We’ve also got all the details about fares, the new app and what will change here.

I must say it’s a far cry from the bus network of my youth. Certainly, in the early noughties it felt a bit like a Wacky Races style race to the bottom. There were an array of buses competing for my cash - hard earned from my weekend job at Millie's Cookies - but being a sixth former I was not willing to part with a penny more than required. So for me the Magic Bus weekly pass (£4) was decadent when compared to Finglands (£3) or UK North (£2).

Of course, whichever option you went with, you'd inevitably be left standing at the bus stop like a lemon for half an hour as dozens of the wrong buses