Keep Manchester Green and Clean
Written by Simon Pearson
Many people use their cars and never even think about the alternatives. not every journey is better by public transport that is for sure. But public transport should be important to us all. it plays such a vital part in reducing congestion and pollution.
Buses, trains and trams play a wide role in our society enabling people to go to work, to do their shopping, visit their friends and family and get out and about. Not every city has the luxury of a tram network and it’s this service that we take a look at first.METROLINK
Metrolink trams run through Manchester City Centre; through Salford Quays and into Eccles; and through the suburbs to Altrincham in the South of the county and Bury in the North. This provides a link in and out of the city and a convenient way to travel around the centre. Metrolink passengers can also travel to the Trafford Centre by using the Metrolink Trafford Centre shuttle bus service. For disabled passengers, all metrolink stations are fully accessible.
Prices are more expensive during peak hours, for example, if you are travelling on a return ticket from Manchester to Eccles during the busy period you could be charged around 80p more. Despite this, it is one of the most environmentally friendly forms of transport and if you are travelling to and from work during rush hour you don’t have the daily grind of crawling into work in the car to think about. Not to mention the costs for car parking fees and fuel!
If you are making the same journey on a daily basis for a regular amount of time, it’s worth thinking about the Metrolink season tickets that are available. You can purchase 7 day and 28 day Metrolink season tickets from GMPTE travelshops and paypoint agents. Quarterly season tickets and annual season tickets are also available from travelshops and direct from Metrolink.
For annual season ticket enquiries ring Metrolink direct on 0161 205 2000. It’s important to note for all of these tickets you will need to join up with the Metrolink travel club and obtain a photo ID card.
BUS SERVICES
Wherever you are in and around Manchester, you will never be too far from a bus stop and a service to get you to and from the city centre. It is worth looking at the special tickets available as with the Metrolink, as you can save on booking return tickets. Or look at special low fare buses such as the ‘Magic Bus’ which takes in local areas to and from Manchester including Rusholme and Didsbury.
For people coming into the city centre via Oxford Road and the Universities, this is a much cheaper alternative and bearing in mind that this stretch of road is one of busiest bus routes in Europe, the magic bus is a much more convenient way to travel - yes it may not always be the most desirable but its far more ecofriendly.
NIGHT BUS SERVICE
This is a late bus service that runs on Friday and Saturday nights until around 2am to get you home after your night out. There are a number of bus services running at night from
Manchester city centre and other district town centres. In case there are any fears of passenger safety, there is a continued police unit on patrol on some of the services to ensure passenger safety. CCTV operates on all nightbus services as well. Visit www.gmpte.com/nightbus for more information on the nightbus services available.
BUSES - GOING GREEN
GMPTE takes its environmental problems very seriously. Economic, social and
environmental factors are now considered to be of equal importance when making
decisions. Research suggests that between a third and a half of particulate pollution on major bus corridors, and at bus stations, come from buses. GMPTE runs a grant-aid scheme that provides 25% of the cost of exhaust trap purchases and fittings up to a £1000. 13% of the total fleet in Manchester had been fitted with these traps by the end of 2006 and this figure has continued to rise since.
FREE TRANSPORT
Metroshuttle buses are FREE buses available linking the main train stations, shopping areas and businesses in Manchester city centre. You can also use the Metrolink trams free in the city centre with any train ticket from a station in Greater Manchester.
TRAIN SERVICES
Greater Manchester has a rail network of 142 route miles with 98 stations, forming a central hub to the North West rail network. As with the metrolink and bus services there are a variety of tickets available to suit your needs. It is surprising how many people make the same journey to work but don’t buy say a weekly or monthly ticket and save lots of hard earned cash in the process! It is always worth looking at what works best for you. But rather than just buying a single or return ticket look at the best value for you.
WHY USE PUBLIC TRANSPORT?
There are many environmental reasons for using public transport. It plays a vital role in
combating the problems of congestion and pollution caused by ever increasing traffic in and around town and cities like Manchester. If you drive to work in Manchester every day and spend most of your time sitting in traffic, or you pay £10 or so to leave your car in a car park then public transport maybe the best option for you.
Of course because of the distance some of us have to travel to work, it is not always possible to do this. So, what about car sharing? You could also think about something like park and ride. Many people travel from villages and towns in West Yorkshire and beyond and this works for them so why shouldn’t we all think that little bit more about the environment.
Manchester will certainly continue to grow and traffic will obviously continue to increase. Congestion charges for travelling into Manchester city centre are not too far away now. With this in mind, the transport system has and will continue to develop and expand including more routes planned for the Metrolink. So do your bit for the environment. Leave the car at home and start to GO GREEN!
